I have picked up a lot of interesting things from the book, though, and it’s changing the way I look at the world around me. The book’s “big idea” for Christians is this:

I am deeply loved, completely forgiven, fully pleasing, totally accepted by God, and complete in Christ.

I always have a hard time internalizing things like this, but I have seen glimpses of these truths, and it’s amazing.

I’m also struck by how many people believe the lie (my self-worth = my performance + other’s opinions). I guess I shouldn’t be, since I believe it a lot of the time, but I was hit by it again this morning while reading people’s answers to a prompt in one of my dieting groups. The prompt was “I am proud of myself today because…” and almost every response was totally performance-driven. Either they were happy because of something they did, or unhappy because they didn’t do something. None of the answers were “be” or “are” answers; they were all “do”.

On a different but related note, I really like this quote from Karen Hancock’s blog:

Great messages lately in Bible class, particularly the one about how “God is able to make all grace ABOUND to you, that ALWAYS having ALL sufficiency in EVERYTHING you may have an ABUNDANCE for EVERY good deed.” ~ 2 Co 9:8

Just a reminder that I have everything I need — the talent, the wit, the time, the energy — to complete this task in accordance with His will. I am keeping myself focused on that, and not the scary speculations that want to raise their very ugly heads from time to time.

Many of us are hurt emotionally, relationally, and spiritually, but because we are unaware of the extent of our wounds, we don’t take steps toward healing and health. Our problem is not stupidity but a lack of objectivity.

The author suggests that there are a variety of reasons for this lack, ranging from thinking our situation is “normal,” to trying to be in control, to protecting others (like our parents). But regardless of the reasons, we tend to “develop elaborate defense mechanisms to block pain and gain significance.

Several of the examples hit home for me: compulsive perfectionism (well, when I bother); driving myself to succeed; helping people to feel appreciated; trying to say “the right thing” to be accepted.

Too bad this chapter is mostly just casting light on the problem, rather than telling me (in just five easy steps!) how to fix myself (though obviously that very suggestion shows how much is wrong with me). However, I found this encouraging:

Experiencing His love does not mean that all of our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors will be pleasant and pure. It means that we can be real, feeling pain and joy, love and anger, confidence and confusion.

Well, I guess that might not sound encouraging, but I like the idea of being authentic even in the worst parts of life. And speaking of the worst parts…

…Paul instructs us to put on the armor of God so that we can be equipped for spiritual battle. However, it often seems that unsuspecting believers are the last to know this battle is occuring, and they don’t know that Christ has ultimately won the war. They are suprised and confused by difficulties, thinking that the Christian life is a playground, not a battlefield.

That’s a point that I agree most of us miss. There’s a lot of confusion about what the point of being a Christian is. I think I’ve ranted before about the perception that being a Christian is about being a good person. To actually follow Christ is a harder task (well, at least when compared to looking like a good person), but I have this idea that it’s deeply tied in with our self-perceptions, too.

I’m looking forward to the “practical” parts of the book.

The more people I talk to about this book, the more I hear “it changed my life.” My friend Penny said, “I wish I had a case of them to give away.” She said the book helped her take an awful past and realize that she was loved anyway—that it was a primary force in getting her past the bad stuff.

I have always believed in God, never doubted His existance or anything, but I really struggle with internalizing the fact that He cares about me. Again, I know it, but I want it to be more than just a head-thing. My sincere hope is that this book will somehow communicate the truth to my heart.

For those of you reading along (with the book or just the blog commentary), what are you hoping to get out of it?

Introduction: July 18
Chapter one: July 19
Chapter two: July 20
Chapter three: July 21
Chapter four: July 24
Chapter five: July 28
Chapter six: July 31
Chapter seven: August 4
Chapter eight: August 7
Chapter nine: August 11
Chapter ten: August 14
Chapter eleven: August 21
Chapter twelve: August 25
Chapter thirteen: August 28

You can see that it’s a bit front loaded, so feel free to take it at your own pace. I need to catch up with the local group, hence the push. And of course, none of that is written in stone or guaranteed, but I thought writing it out would help me remember what I’m doing. There may possibly be other posts, too, to share insights from the local group or discuss questions brought up here.

We also have “Tuesday Night” where we have a potluck-y supper and then split into groups. Most of the groups on Tuesdays are studying books, but there are other groups (like the “Scrappy Crafters”). We rotate these groups pretty regularly so that no one gets bored (or stuck!) with one topic for too long, and also to give new folks a chance to jump in.

All of that is a long prelude to me telling you that, starting in July, one of the new Tuesday night groups will be studying “The Search for Significance” by Robert S. McGee. I could actually say “working through” rather than “studying” because it’s going to be very interactive—half the book is a workbook.

I’m really looking forward to this particular group, because Brian, our pastor, has been using the book as inspiration for a series he’s preaching on self-worth. The basis of this is that Satan perpetuates the following myth:

My value = my performance + others’ approval

This book is all about discovering our real value and getting rid of the lies.

Unfortunately for me, these lies are pretty deeply ingrained. I don’t know that a book can solve all of my problems, but I do believe it will at least make me aware of them and point me in the right direction (that would be God).

I have a feeling already that this is one of those books I’m going to want to recommend to everyone, and I’ve already recommended it to a friend, so I thought it would make sense to post about it as I go along. I’m mentioning this now so that if you’re interested in reading the book and discussing it, you have time to get it.

You can buy a used-but-new copy at Amazon for under $10 shipped. Just go and look under the “Used and new” section. Look for books that say “new” or “like new”, because you’ll want the workbook section to be unused (well, unless you’re nosy, but that’s a separate issue). You’ll also want to look for ones that don’t say “older edition” or similar, because I think the previous printings didn’t have the workbook section. If you can find one that says “direct from Robert McGee”, get that: it’s a brand new copy sold by the author. (I bought one from him among the four total I purchased—I’m getting everyone in my household to do the study.)

That’s all for now. Stay tuned. The first meeting is July 11th, which I’m going to miss because I’ll be on vacation, but I’ll post shortly after that and try to post at least once a week.