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“We learn self-acceptance when we’ve experienced total acceptance.”

A thought by Maria Goff (2017-03-07) from her book, Love Lives Here: Finding What You Need in a World Telling You What You Want   (Kindle Location 765). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

Have you ever had a problem with comparison?  It can be a real problem, can’t it?

Maria says, “The thing I’m learning about comparison is that the only way it will leave us alone is if we name it for what it is and then ignore it completely. We could spend our time sorting through all of its lies like clothes at a thrift store, or we can spot comparison coming our way, call it a liar, and simply refuse to make eye contact with it.

“Low self-worth makes our eye wander toward other people’s papers. If this is you, figure out the return address on the messages you’re listening to. Jesus is more interested in who we’re becoming than who we were. He doesn’t want us to become like each other; He wants us to be like Him. The problem is that we’re letting other people do that talking for Him. We all have something we are good at. Figure out what it is and celebrate it. Value what you’re good at and you’ll understand more about yourself. Find your worth and you’ll find your release from comparison.”

She goes on, “Wanting to be a better version of you is worthwhile. Desiring to change is maturity. Hoping to be someone else is just wasting your time. To the corporate executive who wants to be a sculptor, go get some clay. For the astronaut who wants to play the banjo, take a lesson or two. For the athlete who wants to sing opera, or the musician who wants to be a chef, go learn those things. And to the couples who want to make a career out of raising a family, go adopt or make some people. We don’t need a plan to be us, and we don’t need permission either; we just need to begin.”

She then says, “We learn self-acceptance when we’ve experienced total acceptance. Go find someone or something that will love you back with no strings attached and you’ll stop comparing yourself to anyone else. It won’t be a program or a self-help book or a career that will be our guide to experience the kind of love and acceptance we all crave; it will be a person. For me, it was Jesus. We weren’t created to fit in; we were made to stand apart.”

That is good stuff.  It really is. 


Did you know that you are really, really, special?
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