Aug 29th, 2020: Are We Showing Up?
I listened to a webinar recently, and the presenter was talking about the need to show up for ourselves before showing for others. He was coming from a different perspective, and that was good for me to learn about what others see things. I have been thinking a bit about that topic because I have met a few people who have not shown up for themselves and eventually become their worst enemy in their struggles with life.
We fail to show up for ourselves due to our past behaviour. The common saying is that we all have our "hidden closet", and we choose to hide in it. We don't show up for anyone. We become fearful of being exposed, so we hide away completely. We think that we can run away from what is damaging us only to discover that we are running in circles. We fail to show up for ourselves because we are avoiding the truth.
We fail to show up for ourselves when we have not learned to develop what God has given us. We will become lesser than whom we can be if we are not committed to personal growth and not because of our lack of ability. We have seen men and women who have gone beyond their limitations because they have a drive for constant learning and development. In short, laziness trumps giftedness.
We fail to show up for ourselves because we are selfish. That sounds like a contradiction, but it is not. The window of how we see the world is a lot smaller when we are self-preoccupied. We then become a lot less than what God has intended for us. We operate within the framework of self-imprisonment. Selfish people will spend time to take care of themselves as No.1 without knowing that there is only one No 1. A false perception of who is No.1 is the real lie. Selfishness is a description of falsehood.
Matthew 22: 37-40
"And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."