By Steve Backlund

This is a profound question that will get to the heart of our concept of God, our theology, our identity, and how we motivate ourselves and others. 

I remember having a conversation with a leader who was concerned about his thinking. He was about ready to enter a building project, and he found himself fixating on money more than he wanted. His conclusion about this was that there was something wrong with him. Thus, he did not feel good about himself. 

I told him this was the wrong conclusion to make. I said because he was going higher in influence and load-bearing capacity, weaknesses were being exposed. This exposure was not for condemnation, but it simply revealed areas to be strengthened as his influence grew. 

This is what happens to a sports team that starts playing against better competition. The stronger opponent reveals flaws the team was not even aware of. The struggle they have to win will often lead them to conclude that they are losers. That would be the wrong belief. The correct thinking would be this: “I feel like I am going backward at this higher level, but it is actually a normal feeling that will not last.” If the team maintains a belief that they are constantly improving, the players will learn and grow into the new level and so will we.

If we only choose to do the things we can do well, then we are like the one-talent servant in the parable of the talents in Matthew 25. We will let fear, perfectionism, and passivity rob us of our potential. We reduce our lives by playing small.

As we seek to embrace our true identity and purpose, we will have our weaknesses revealed to us in greater ways. We will be tempted to feel bad about ourselves and lose confidence. This is a reason many are not breaking through into higher dimensions of life and influence. Some would object to this thought because they believe people may conclude they are okay when they really are not. Yes, this may happen, but it is important to realize the most transformational doctrinal and identity beliefs have the biggest potential for abuse. We cannot let this fear stop us from moving into what Graham Cooke would describe as “brilliant thinking”. 

If you are a follower of Jesus and you are seeking to go higher in beliefs and influence, here are a few reasons you should feel good about yourself right now: 

1. The joy of the Lord is your strength (Nehemiah 8:10) – The religious mindset constantly believes we are not measuring up and that God is mad at us. It is impossible to truly embrace joy without feeling good about ourselves. If I do not have joy, then I will be limiting my strength. 
2. Delighting in the Lord will give us the desires of our heart (Psalm 37:4) – It is also impossible to delight in the Lord without feeling good about who we are. We will have to let go of striving, condemnation, and perfectionism. 
3. He is strong when we are weak – “But He said to me (Paul), ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9). Paul said he would boast all the more gladly in weaknesses (feel good about himself) because he realized every weakness in him was a place where God would reveal His strength. 

We do not withhold approval from a toddler who is not walking perfectly. We don’t say, “I will not approve of you until you walk perfectly because if I approve of you now, you might feel good about yourself and stop trying to improve.” No, an atmosphere of encouragement gets the best results. Let’s not withhold approval from ourselves while we are learning to walk higher in joy, hope, relationships, life management, etc. 

So, should you feel good about yourself on this journey? I say yes. Certainly, if we are hurting or abusing people, or being reckless in our decision making, we should get help, but the key for most of us reading this today is summed up in these declarations: 

1. I am growing incredibly in not only loving myself but liking myself. 
2. I get excited when my flaws are revealed as I seek to walk higher in beliefs and habits. 
3. I love the process of growing into my potential.