We had a great talk in Sacrament Meeting today (3/24) that touched on this topic. I wish I had been taking notes, but the one thing I thought to scribble down quickly was this: "those who are proud look to the world to find value". I felt like that could apply to me during certain times of my life.
I just told someone recently that I am really good at being really hard on myself. I think I always have been. We don't need to analyze the "why's" of that in this setting, but it's the truth and I can admit that. I could probably very easily make a list of all the reasons why I am seemingly not good enough. But you would all think I am crazy and it wouldn't do any good anyway, because deep down I know I am good enough. Although, we just can't ignore the fact that many of us struggle with this.
It has been very beneficial to me to take steps to overcome some of these negative feelings about myself. One of the areas I had really been beating myself up over was that I was not being a very good mother. I was fortunate enough to spend several months last year doing some counseling, that was quite effective in helping me overcome the strong negative thoughts I had about myself as a mother. I have calmed down so much in the last year. I am not quite as impatient with myself or my kids, and although I don't necessarily feel like I deserve a blue ribbon or an award for mother of the year, I know I am a good mother and am doing the best I can and trying to learn all the time.
I guess I have been trying to figure out who I am in this new role and chapter of my life and I am hopeful that the answers are coming.
Comparing ourselves to others is such an effective trap that Satan uses. I often struggle with this. Some of the things I compare to others about myself are: college education, musical talents, likeability, wealth, size of my house, appearance, etc. And ALL of it is worldly.
I have been going through some talks on lds.org
Here are some quotes I like that are really uplifting:
"God knows that some of the greatest souls who have ever lived are those who will never appear in the chronicles of history. They are the blessed, humble souls who emulate the Savior’s example and spend the days of their lives doing good." Dieter F. Uchtdorf, You Matter to Him Oct. 2011
"Sisters,
wherever you are, whatever your circumstances may be, you are not
forgotten. No matter how dark your days may seem, no matter how
insignificant you may feel, no matter how overshadowed you think you may
be, your Heavenly Father has not forgotten you. In fact, He loves you
with an infinite love.
Just
think of it: You are known and remembered by the most majestic,
powerful, and glorious Being in the universe! You are loved by the King
of infinite space and everlasting time!" Dieter F Uchtdorf, Forget Me Not Oct. 2011
"Our Father in Heaven provides the perfect example of this principle. He sees our divine nature. We are His children. The way He sees us, because of His love for us, is perfect. The mirror which He holds constantly before us, if we will only raise our sight to look, is the one in which we should trust. Its image is always true and never distorted. He reminds us, as He did Moses, “Thou art my son [or daughter]” (Moses 1:4)." Elder Lynn G. Robins, True Beauty Nov. 2008
"There is
something of divinity within each of you. You have such tremendous
potential with that quality as a part of your inherited nature. Every
one of you was endowed by your Father in Heaven with a tremendous
capacity to do good in the world. Train your minds and your hands that
you may be equipped to serve well in the society of which you are a
part. Cultivate the art of being kind, of being thoughtful, of being
helpful. Refine within you the quality of mercy which comes as a part of
the divine attributes you have inherited.
Some of
you may feel that you are not as attractive and beautiful and glamorous
as you would like to be. Rise above any such feelings, cultivate the
light you have within you, and it will shine through as a radiant
expression that will be seen by others.
You need
never feel inferior. You need never feel that you were born without
talents or without opportunities to give them expression. Cultivate
whatever talents you have, and they will grow and refine and become an
expression of your true self appreciated by others.
In
summary, try a little harder to measure up to the divine within each of
you. As Alma said, “Awake and arouse your faculties” (Alma 32:27)." Gordon B Hinckley, The Light Within You, May 1995
I think the point is, that we can never truly or fully depend on or look to those around us to measure our self worth. There are those we love and who love us who can build us up, but there are also those who will judge or criticize. But when we really strive to see ourselves as our Creator sees us, then the peace will come.That's what I am going to work on...
Two weeks ago in Relief Society our teacher shared a beautiful story about self worth that really touched me. When I get a hold of it I will share it....hopefully soon!
3 comments:
You are always on the course for self-improvement. I love it and it is inspiring. We can all do better, especially at loving ourselves and forgiving ourselves for our shortcomings.
I love that post. Well said. When I feel blue about who I am, I just repeat this mantra to myself and I think it's a good one for children to hear over and over: "You can be anything you want to be." I think that that mantra helps me to overcome the temptation to compare and to realize, if I see something I like, I can do it myself! Imitation is the best form of flattery. I love Ben Stein's book, "How Successful People Win," and I paraphrase: "When you see someone have success and something that you would like to have success at, just ask that person how they did it and then do the things that will give you the same success." We all have a divine potential. College shmollege. Seriously. College is where people go who want to do a specific trade. Continued education at home is where most of my real learning has taken place. And I've learned way more about real life being a mother than sitting at a desk talking about life in "theory." A Chinese proverb says: "What I hear, I will forget [that is definitely true for college]. What I see, I will remember. What I do, I will understand." So true!!
Great posts. This is something I struggle with too. I try to remember that when I compare myself to others, I am always comparing my faults to everyone else's strengths.
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