The Christian Inferiority Complex

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

Having said the above, I do believe that i do serve God in my own way- to me i seem to serve God in ways that are quite practical eg i see a need and God helps me meet it if i can. whereas my sister spends a lot of time at feet of Jesus. now i do believe, in my case, that i need to so more of that- i tend to be more a Martha than a Mary. maybe the key is that my sister spenda a LOT of time with Jesus.

also i sometimes struggle with intimacy with Jesus because i battle a lot of fear and shame yes, my sister and i both went through the same hellish childhood experiences, more or less, and yes, she has her issues too, but for me, trust has been particularly hard, as i tend to be more anxious. and as an adult i put myself ina lot of self destructive situations, so i have had more isn to deal with.

my sister gave her heart to Jesus as a small child. me, i was a small child sitting in sunday school feelijg confused and bitter and believing Jesus hated me because i knew deep down i had a lot of darkness in my soul, a lot f bitterness. my sister was no less wounded but she seemed a more innocent, sunny natured person than me. just a question of personality- i was a stormy intense child form the word go, my sister sensitive too but not as up anjd down as i was. later on as we became teenagers, my sister suffered depression and i believe some post trauma symptoms as well, whereas i ended up with borderline personality disorder, extreme trauma reactions, a lot of acting out behaviour (some of it rooted in sin but at same time more thna that, i feel). she was the good girl who was meek and knew how to toe the line, me i was often timid and fearful but also rigid, moody and restless and bored easily. so yeah, temperamnet may playa part. i do thnk that though we all sin, some of us are easily led more, and i woudl describe mysefl as the one who would easily fall into worng behaviour. i think y sister's faith had a lot to do with the fact that even as a child, she had the fruit of goodness and self control . me, i took longer to get that.

Do you think perhaps your sister should get up and give you a hand?

 

[Junia]

I am happy for those who have many spiritual blessings while realizing I have issues to deal with. The Lord provided me with a conscience ( Acts of the Apostles 14:16-17, Romans 2 etc.) even before I knew Him. I still need this conscience to live by ( Romans 13), to be accountable ( Romans 11:22-23), & try to be fruitful ( Ephesians 2:8-10).

yes. i do believe some people are actually more predisposed towards being good or nice people so even before they get born again, they live like decent humanbeings. for me, well, let's just say i need the new birth to even begin to be decent and not hate filled angry and twisted. the playing field isn;t level to start with. But the wonderful thing is, all who trsut in Him get the reward of a new life with Him. like the parable of the vineyard workers. some have a head start but those who don't get the same Heaven in the end.

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

yes. i do believe some people are actually more predisposed towards being good or nice people so even before they get born again, they live like decent humanbeings. for me, well, let's just say i need the new birth to even begin to be decent and not hate filled angry and twisted. the playing field isn;t level to start with. But the wonderful thing is, all who trsut in Him get the reward of a new life with Him. like the parable of the vineyard workers. some have a head start but those who don't get the same Heaven in the end.

But the point of the Jubilee that Jesus inaugurated was a flattening of the playing field. Just people throwing dirt that causes mountains and molehills.

 

[Junia]

Do you think perhaps your sister should get up and give you a hand?

oh she i svery helpful. i just mean generally, we live in different places etc and have different lives but the way we work out our fsaith is so different. she jsut loves spending hours in God;s presence whereas me, i spend some time with Him on a good day and learn something from HIM and then i get on with my day doing normal things but doing thm with Jesus? if that makes sense. whereas my sister can actually pray for hours and be on a very intimate spiritual plane with the Lord like that as well as doing normal life with Him, whereas i tend ot have abit of that intimacy but am unable to jsut sit there just being. i read PRACTICING THE pRESENCE by Brother Lawrence last year asnd wow- blew my mind. i learned that i could judt talk to God whilst getting on with my life per usual. and that was a wa that suited me somehow and helped me grow. and compared to my sister, it isn;t all that impressive, but for ME, it is a big step forward

 

[Sketcher]

How do you stop comparing yourself to other Christians?

I definitely commend the on-fire-every-moment sorts of people; I think a faith that burns bright like that is so, so amazing. But it’s hard not to get discouraged when you see people on social media who journal all the time, who read Christian books every week, who have amazing prayer lives, who seem so confident in their relationship with God all the time. I know they’re not perfect, and many of them are genuinely honest about their struggles. Even so, I can’t help but feel guilty. I’m just...not like that. Or I’m in a different place. I know this is a journey, and different people have different-looking walks. It’s so easy to fall into the “I’m not crazy on-fire like them, so I must be lukewarm” mindset.

How do you break free from that?

I recognize that I am an individual, created and sanctified by God for a purpose.

"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." - Ephesians 2:10

 

[Michie]

oh she i svery helpful. i just mean generally, we live in different places etc and have different lives but the way we work out our fsaith is so different. she jsut loves spending hours in God;s presence whereas me, i spend some time with Him on a good day and learn something from HIM and then i get on with my day doing normal things but doing thm with Jesus? if that makes sense. whereas my sister can actually pray for hours and be on a very intimate spiritual plane with the Lord like that as well as doing normal life with Him, whereas i tend ot have abit of that intimacy but am unable to jsut sit there just being. i read PRACTICING THE pRESENCE by Brother Lawrence last year asnd wow- blew my mind. i learned that i could judt talk to God whilst getting on with my life per usual. and that was a wa that suited me somehow and helped me grow. and compared to my sister, it isn;t all that impressive, but for ME, it is a big step forward

We are all unique and have different gifts. It’s okay to admire your sister but you both are different people. Just work on what works for you. It does not mean she is better than you. It just means you both are different and are in different points if your journey.

 

[Junia]

my sister is very excited about the deep things of God. i'd love ot be like that but sometimes all ican cope with, all i feel strong enough or brave enough to cope with is simple Jesus loves me, this i know. sometime si jsut cannot cope with more than that. my sister on the other hand, goes from prophetic conference to healing conference to all sorts of things, followingloads of christian teachers. i like some of them, but many of them leave me cold. so am obviously not a sspiritual as her.... i'd love ot be but i jsut cannot get really excited like that al the time.. she a big fan of Sid Roth and Tracey Cook etc but i find them scary. not as people, but some of what they are into. i jsut cannot deal with alot of end times theology or heaven visits or going to hell testimonies. i believe in the gifts and use them myself but i just dont have the same love she has for Jesus. i love Him and serve Him but she is lovesick for Him. It is beautiful to see, but am just not like that. i dont find love or relationshios easy anyway. i want to, but i dont't.

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

oh she i svery helpful. i just mean generally, we live in different places etc and have different lives but the way we work out our fsaith is so different. she jsut loves spending hours in God;s presence whereas me, i spend some time with Him on a good day and learn something from HIM and then i get on with my day doing normal things but doing thm with Jesus? if that makes sense. whereas my sister can actually pray for hours and be on a very intimate spiritual plane with the Lord like that as well as doing normal life with Him, whereas i tend ot have abit of that intimacy but am unable to jsut sit there just being. i read PRACTICING THE pRESENCE by Brother Lawrence last year asnd wow- blew my mind. i learned that i could judt talk to God whilst getting on with my life per usual. and that was a wa that suited me somehow and helped me grow. and compared to my sister, it isn;t all that impressive, but for ME, it is a big step forward

John 11:5 says Christ loved Martha Mary and Lazarus who I see as representatives of human nature. Martha’s busyness could be likened to Peter’s mother who was cured to serve the son of man. I’m sure we all meet Jesus in a place that is unique.

 

[Hammster]

Here’s a crazy idea. How about sticking with addressing the OP?

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

my sister is very excited about the deep things of God. i'd love ot be like that but sometimes all ican cope with, all i feel strong enough or brave enough to cope with is simple Jesus loves me, this i know. sometime si jsut cannot cope with more than that. my sister on the other hand, goes from prophetic conference to healing conference to all sorts of things, followingloads of christian teachers. i like some of them, but many of them leave me cold. so am obviously not a sspiritual as her.... i'd love ot be but i jsut cannot get really excited like that al the time.. she a big fan of Sid Roth and Tracey Cook etc but i find them scary. not as people, but some of what they are into. i jsut cannot deal with alot of end times theology or heaven visits or going to hell testimonies. i believe in the gifts and use them myself but i just dont have the same love she has for Jesus. i love Him and serve Him but she is lovesick for Him. It is beautiful to see, but am just not like that. i dont find love or relationshios easy anyway. i want to, but i dont't.

The great thing is is that you see your sister as Jesus sees her, and as He sees you as a brother is hopefully how she sees you.

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

Here’s a crazy idea. How about sticking with addressing the OP?

Boring

 

[Hammster]

Boring

But within the rules. So I win.

 

[lsume]

How do you stop comparing yourself to other Christians?

I definitely commend the on-fire-every-moment sorts of people; I think a faith that burns bright like that is so, so amazing. But it’s hard not to get discouraged when you see people on social media who journal all the time, who read Christian books every week, who have amazing prayer lives, who seem so confident in their relationship with God all the time. I know they’re not perfect, and many of them are genuinely honest about their struggles. Even so, I can’t help but feel guilty. I’m just...not like that. Or I’m in a different place. I know this is a journey, and different people have different-looking walks. It’s so easy to fall into the “I’m not crazy on-fire like them, so I must be lukewarm” mindset.

How do you break free from that?

Something that took me too long to grasp it seems is the difference between talking about Jesus and doing what Jesus taught us to do. If you are totally honest about it, we have all been hypocrites at some point. The 1 Corinthians 13 about Love is very powerful.

 

[NerdGirl]

How do you stop comparing yourself to other Christians?

I definitely commend the on-fire-every-moment sorts of people; I think a faith that burns bright like that is so, so amazing. But it’s hard not to get discouraged when you see people on social media who journal all the time, who read Christian books every week, who have amazing prayer lives, who seem so confident in their relationship with God all the time. I know they’re not perfect, and many of them are genuinely honest about their struggles. Even so, I can’t help but feel guilty. I’m just...not like that. Or I’m in a different place. I know this is a journey, and different people have different-looking walks. It’s so easy to fall into the “I’m not crazy on-fire like them, so I must be lukewarm” mindset.

How do you break free from that?

I honestly think this is something to do with each, individual person, rather than being a "Christian" issue. I've never been one to compare myself to others, so I don't compare myself much to other Christians, either. I'm just me.

I also think that there's a bit of self-righteous "look at me and my perfect life/spouse/children/house/hobbies/prayer journal" phenomenon on social media, that I have no desire to be part of. If you feel the need to post your relationship with God all over the place, you probably could use a dose of humility. I think Christians fall into it because, well, they're human. And humans want to fit in, be noticed, be liked, be accepted, and feel relevant.

It's just not something I've ever really felt. I couldn't care less about who's prayer journaling what, nor do I feel any urge to post cutesy jpegs of sunrises and flowers with verses on them. I dunno. It just doesn't make anyone feel "more" Christian to me. It makes me feel like they're on a bandwagon.

And yes, most of them are hiding their burdens and struggles and flaws.

 

[NerdGirl]

.

 

[Junia]

I recognize that I am an individual, created and sanctified by God for a purpose.

"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." - Ephesians 2:10

I really like this way of looking at it. thanks

 

[Junia]

Boring

I'm sorry. i should nto have derialed the thread... i was only tryng to contribute to the discussion and tell the OP i understand

 

[Junia]

I honestly think this is something to do with each, individual person, rather than being a "Christian" issue. I've never been one to compare myself to others, so I don't compare myself much to other Christians, either. I'm just me.

I also think that there's a bit of self-righteous "look at me and my perfect life/spouse/children/house/hobbies/prayer journal" phenomenon on social media, that I have no desire to be part of. If you feel the need to post your relationship with God all over the place, you probably could use a dose of humility. I think Christians fall into it because, well, they're human. And humans want to fit in, be noticed, be liked, be accepted, and feel relevant.

It's just not something I've ever really felt. I couldn't care less about who's prayer journaling what, nor do I feel any urge to post cutesy jpegs of sunrises and flowers with verses on them. I dunno. It just doesn't make anyone feel "more" Christian to me. It makes me feel like they're on a bandwagon.

And yes, most of them are hiding their burdens and struggles and flaws.

oops! i have just realised my avatar is one of those cutesy flowery verse ones

 

[Junia]

The great thing is is that you see your sister as Jesus sees her, and as He sees you as a brother is hopefully how she sees you.

LOL , we are both female, but thanks

 

[NerdGirl]

oops! i have just realised my avatar is one of those cutesy flowery verse ones

To each, their own