Original Self-Worth: Adam and Eve lost the clear, simple sense of their own identity. That picture of themselves that they had found reflected in the loving eyes of the one who designed them was blurred and distorted when they rebelled against him. Suddenly they were ashamed of their bodies they had felt so good about. Suddenly they were scrambling for fig leaves and a good hideout. Many of us carry in us the destructive payoff for Edens wrong choice. We find our image in the eyes of imperfect others (parents, peers, teachers, etc.) and develop a faulty sense of self. An unhealthy and unrealistic sense of self can make our lives miserable and even ruin our health. I have known more than one anorexic teen who has stubbornly tried to starve herself because she saw her thin body as fat. I have another gorgeous friend who has won major beauty competitions, yet she sees her flaws far more clearly than she sees her strong points. Our loss of identity often goes deeper than our looks. We try to acquire a feeling of significance in many other areas as well: our work, our achievements, our bank accounts, our social standing, our connections. Adam and Eve in the garden did not need any of these things to prove their value. But our chaotic culture has us running in circles to find our worth in doing. The year I worked in the advertising industry, I saw firsthand that fortunes are made and empires built on the shaky self-images of prospective consumers. Every ad I wrote was aimed at convincing buyers that purchasing this car or shopping at that store or dining at this restaurant would finally make them feel whole and happy and fulfilled- that with one simple purchase they would magically possess the self-confidence they had been lacking. But the truth is, no amout of money can buy back for us that true, balanced, sense of self-worth that was left behind in Eden. It can only be found where Adam and Eve found it, in the eyes of the one who made us. AUTHOR: Claire Cloninger
Posted on: Wed, 12 Mar 2014 17:49:00 +0000
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015