Skip to main content

“None of us is entirely what others perceive us to be.”

A thought by James MacDonald (2010-05-03) from his book, 10 Choices: A Proven Plan to Change Your Life Forever (Kindle Locations 3224-3225). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

Oh, I wish I could hide the fact that I am getting old.   I had someone say the other day that they thought I wasn’t really as old as I am so maybe this thought is true. 

James continues, “The problem is not in the unavoidable gap between others’ perceptions and our reality. The problem is when we ignore the gap. The danger comes when we widen the gap by promoting it. The number one criticism leveled against people of faith is that we are hypocritical, that we knowingly nourish a substantive separation between the life we project and the life we practice.” 

He goes on, “Interestingly, the complaint against hypocrisy is something God Himself has in common with pagans (a very short list of similarities). He, too, despises duplicity. He, too, is incensed by insincerity. Not so much the superficial, silly things that bother me— God hates soul fake-ness. He detests the gap in our lives between what we know to be true and how we’re living it. The biblical term for this kind of living is hypocrisy. God hates hypocrisy.”

James then says, “For that reason, so must we. The opposite of hypocrisy is authenticity, a quality so elusive you don’t get there by accident— you have to choose it.”


So I choose to be authentic.  How about you? 
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)   Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle?   Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...
Post a Comment
Read more

“When you understand that life is a test, you realize that nothing is insignificant in your life.”

A thought by Rick Warren, (2012-10-23) from his book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? (Purpose Driven Life, The) (p. 57). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. To realize that from God’s perspective life is a test goes a long way in determining how you handle your life.   It is important to see that in testing your character is both developed and revealed.   Rick goes on to say that “even the smallest incident has significance for your character development. Every day is an important day, and every second is a growth opportunity to deepen your character, to demonstrate love, or to depend on God.” So there is a God purpose behind each situation in your life.   Even the bad ones are there to strengthen you and develop you.   You see those bad situations are really good ones because they are there for your good. I start each day with a reminder that God is good.   Not every situation that is going to come in my day is good but because G...
Post a Comment
Read more

“What areas of my personality, background, and physical appearance am I struggling to accept?”

A thought by Rick Warren, (2012-10-23) from his book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? (Purpose Driven Life, The) (p. 35). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. Rick posed this question at the end of his chapter, You Are Not an Accident.   In this chapter he deals with the fact that God created you the way you are with a purpose.   In other words you are not an accident.   I am also reading the Apostle John’s view of Jesus and what He said and did while He was here on earth.   In the beginning of Chapter 9 there is a story about a blind man.   And the disciples who were with Him asked Him a good question, “Who sinned, this man or his parents that he was born blind? ”   Have you ever asked the same thing about something in you that you don’t like?   Like that characteristic is a curse or something.   Society has set a standard that is not a standard of God.   Remember, He created you and you are not an accident. Je...
Post a Comment
Read more