Know me

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, "Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?" Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us . . . And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. (Marianne Williamson)

The first time I heard this quote repeated it was attributed to Nelson Mandela, he had quoted it in a speech he gave to the people of So Africa. It was many years before I learned who it was correctly attributed to.
The words might as well have been scripture for their ability to cut to the center of me. I know exactly where I was standing when I heard them who said them and what the wether felt like. I couldn't stop pondering what it really meant to each one of us as children of God. I felt humble and called and confused.

When I was younger in a career, working like some kind of manic machine driven soul, on occasion I would hear of someone leaving saying they were cutting back to be with their family, or because they were sick. I would feel a stab at the center of who I was, because I often had to push off anger toward them thinking they were now making more work for the rest of us. The truth was they were empowering me. The work I did was important but not so vital that I couldn't stop. Once I realized the work would still be there and didn't require me, I stepped into the next pit and fell prey to my own promises, working myself into delirium wanting to be known for my great integrity.  The vortex continues and I got sucked in again.

The key maybe is to be involved and giving freely and in that letting our light shine. Who are we indeed, born to manifest the Glory of God that is manifest in us. I am a poem being written by The creator Himself as the present need dictates, I am not a five year plan, or a percentage to be increased.  Blessed are the meek, the peacemakers, the children of God, for the earth they inherit will be filled with the fruits of the Holy Spirit, love Joy Peace Patience, Goodness Kindness, Gentleness, Faithfulness and Self Control, the Self Control to smile and say no.

I thought I had this figured out than I read this from God's teaching to St Catherine of Sienna: 

The same is true of many of my gifts and graces, virtues and other spiritual gifts, and those things necessary for the body and human life. I have distributed them all in such a way that no one has all of them. Thus I have given you reason – necessity, in fact – to practice mutual charity. For I could well have supplied you with all your needs, both spiritual and material. But I wanted to make you dependent on one another…

So, we are designed with a fundamental need for one another. Humility, mutual dependence and charity, are absolutely necessary for our spiritual growth; they are absolutely necessary for us to overcome serious spiritual challenges. Our culture, fueled by the lies of the enemy, militates against these holy needs and seek to replace them with the anti-virtues of pride, independence, and hyper-individualism. These anti-virtues coupled with fear and vanity have locked up and destroyed many people of good-will who simply would not reach out and get help with the challenges they face.

Jesus said that He came to give us life and that more abundantly. Reach out for that life that he offers to you. Don’t settle for less. Get the help you need.