Thursday, October 6, 2011

World vs. God

Many of my daily preoccupations suggest that I belong more to the world than to God.

A little criticism make me angry, and a little rejection makes me depressed.

A little praise raises my spirits, and a little success excites me.

It takes very little to raise me up or thrust me down.

 Often I am like a small boat on the ocean, completely at the mercy of its waves.

All the time and energy I spend in keeping some kind of balance and preventing myself from being tipped over and drowning shows that my life is mostly a struggle for survival: not a holy struggle, but an anxious struggle resulting from the mistaken idea that it is the world that defines me.

As long as I keep looking for my true self in the world of conditional love,
 I will remain “hooked” to the world–trying, failing, and trying again.

 It is a world that fosters addictions because what it offers cannot satisfy the deepest craving of my heart.


(Nouwen)

1 comment:

The dB family said...

It's really very true isn't it. Thank you for sharing these words with us.

Blessings!
Deborah