February 7, 2005

    Greetings in the name of the

Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Today I'd like to talk about what

people think about themselves.

I believe that there is an

attitude that overtakes people

sometimes that causes them to

stop believing in themselves.

    I'm not saying now that we

should be all caught up in our

own perceived self-importance.

Some people have a big problem

with that.  But I'm talking about

that broader social phenomenon

that causes people to feel like

second class human beings and

limits their ability to accomplish

things in this life, both for

themselves and for God.

   If we are poor, we should

realize that we can be rich in

the Spirit of God.  We should

not look up too much to people

in the world that hold positions

of authority or wealth to the

point that their decisions impact

our own self worth. We do, of

course, respect authority

(he who cannot obey cannot

command), but we also realize

that these people have what they

have only because God has let

them have it and because

they have taken the initiative

to grab hold of it.

    We should not limit ourselves.

God gave us all an instrument

that is so beautifully powerful

that it can impact profoundly

the human race at large.  That

gift is the human mind.  We

don't have to be geniuses to

use it.  Most of the people

who have greaty affected the course

of history were not intellectual

giants.  They just had an

imagination that was unfettered

by fear of failure and inadequacy.

Peter and the Apostles were

ignorant and unlearned men,

but Christ entrusted His ministry

to them.

    And finally, we need to realize

that those of us who are born into

the Kingdom are of a royal

lineage.  For we are given the

power to become the children

of God(John 1:12).  With our Father

we know that all things are possible.

Thus we should not feel inferior

to anyone out in the world.  Being

content with our own talents,  we

can then make a tremendous impact

on this world for the better.

God Bless!