Are we enough being who we are, or should we develop on who we are, to bear fruit in our life, for God, ourselves, and for others too?
By emptychair
@innertalks (23743)
Australia
November 14, 2023 9:59pm CST
It is generally thought that we live a life where we are growing, and improving our knowledge, and outlook, on that life, and so we increase in wisdom from our experiences.
And yet, I read the writings of one guy, who said that self-improvement is unnecessary.
He says that the idea that we can be improved upon tells us indirectly that right now, we are not fully grown into our full potential self.
Rather than try to improve on ourself, he says that we just need to be, and so to live from, the self that we already are.
Our real self needs no improvement, as it was perfectly constructed as us by God.
So, instead of becoming something who we are not, we just need to be who we already are.
We are enough who we are, and so we should start to live from who we are, instead of wanting to live from some other idea of who we think that we want to be.
We can embrace God's blueprint of who we are, and expand ourselves to fulfil this plan, purpose, and blueprint, for our lives
This type of talk sounds good, but it misses the fundamental truth, that the whole point of our life here is not for us to stay that self, but to develop it into something useful for God.
We grow the raw potential into something that bears fruit, and this never happens if all we do is rest on our laurels, pretending to be a fruit-bearing tree already, when we need to prune, nourish and grow it, into fruiting, over time, first.
To grow good apples, we need to take the right steps, and apply them to the task, the process, of apple growing.
God's love develops itself in you from right living, right understanding, and right being, and it then nourishes you fully, so that you do then bear fruit for God.
A tree left to its own resources is seldom enough in this world, where God wants you to be more than yourself for him, and grow into a fruit-bearing tree for him, in your life for him.
Photo Credit: The photo used in this article was sourced from the free media site, pixabay.com
5 people like this
4 responses
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
15 Nov 23
Thanks.
Yes, the self-help gurus want us to be our real self, for ourselves, when we need to be rather the self that God has created us to be, and sometimes this calling by God, takes us in unexpected directions too, where we might not have gone, just being ourself for ourself.
We need to grow into who God wants us to be, not who we want to be ourselves.
We need to stay connected to God, not disconnect ourselves from him in, and by, our lives.
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
17 Nov 23
Yes, it is like we are burying our talents then, rather than developing them, as the Parable of the Talents, as told by Jesus Christ tells us to do.
We need to connect to God, and to Jesus Christ, and stay connected to them, by developing a real and ever-growing relationship with them too.
@just4him (323168)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
17 Nov 23
@innertalks Yes, we need to develop a good relationship. Otherwise, He could say He never knew us. Not good.
2 people like this
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
17 Nov 23
@just4him I agree. We grow through our relationship with God, and with his son.
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
15 Nov 23
I think that is true, as far as it goes, but with God, on our side, we can be more than who we are, and grow into who he wants us to be, and created us to be too.
We do not need to settle for just being who we are, because God makes of us something more than who we are.
Without God, many people are contented with just being themselves, and not living a life of service, and love, for God.
We can believe in ourselves, but it is far better if we believe in God too.
@Shiva49 (28390)
• Singapore
15 Nov 23
That reminds me of the following quote: “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.”
Oscar Wilde
However, we have the potential to grow in wisdom with our experiences and observations.
We need to contemplate as often as we can to fine-tune and improve our lives to reach our true potential.
When we act as if we are at the apex of creation here, more is expected from us. And that is what is dinned into us by parents, teachers, bosses, and families. We seem to fall short, however.
1 person likes this
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
15 Nov 23
We need to stay connected, and tuned, in to both God, and our soul, to make sure that our wisdom platform is being assessed from the right ladder though, as otherwise, we might grow too wise in the ways of the world, and know nothing about the real wisdom, spiritual wisdom, though.
Most people fall short these days, because they have shortened themselves by categorising and prioritising their wisdom links, to be learning only about cars, and sports, for example, and nothing about spiritual truths, laws, and time-honoured wisdom, from the ancients, writing these all off as being unimportant, not relevant to their lives, and to the living of it, too.
1 person likes this
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
16 Nov 23
@Shiva49 Yes, those sayings sound good, and are sort of true enough, but they still downplay one role, at the betterment of the other.
I think it is better to just think that in totality we are a branch of God's tree, here, trying to bear fruit for him, and for the tree, rather than splitting ourselves into human, spiritual, and other parts, where we might think that one part is better than the other.
In truth, our hand is a part of our body, as is our foot, and our shoulder is not more spiritual than our hand, or our foot. We are one body, composed of our physical body, mind, and soul, and it is better to see all of the parts of us as a whole, rather than split any part off, like that, I would say too.
@Shiva49 (28390)
• Singapore
16 Nov 23
@innertalks We know what is expected of us, the right path to a meaningful, wholesome life.
The following quote will stand us in good stead:
“We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.”
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Another from him will help us stay connected with our source:
“Joy is the infallible sign of the presence of God.”
So, "It is elementary, my dear Watson", nothing complicated for an upright life.
We need to get our priorities right or we just chase after mirages.
1 person likes this
