Have you tried "living your truth", putting yourself first, believing you're enough, rejecting any form of judgment and still find yourself empty, unfulfilled, and directionless? Is it because you aren't trying enough? Or is it that those concepts guarantee that emptiness and scatteredness?
Alisa Childers - former Zoe Girl, daughter of Jesus Music pioneer Chuck Girard, and author of the excellent book Another Gospel? looks at several cliches like the ones I've mentioned in her book Live Your Truth And Other Lies: Exposing Popular Deceptions That Make Us Anxious, Exhausted, and Self-Obsessed.
In reading this, there is a common thread between the cliches she deals with: they all focus on ourselves. But what we're designed to be more fulfilled when we focus on God and those around us rather than ourselves?
I enjoyed Childers accounting of the movie "Armageddon", and asked how the movie - and our reaction to it - would differ if instead of sacrificing himself to save the world, the character put himself first? It's interesting that we naturally respect those who put others first, but we want to hear that we should look out for number 1.
Two blessings in this book: One was where she mentioned her Zoe Girl bandmates confronted her on self-destructive behavior, and she states that she is thankful for their "judging her" and getting her on the right track. The other was when she mentioned a couple of dreams she gave up. I can relate, because I had dreams of becoming a musician (probably not a singer with my voice, but definitely as a song-writer), a novelist, and a Pastor. Thus far (I'm now 63), those dreams are all unfulfilled. But that doesn't mean I have any reason to be unfulfilled as a result.
As in Another Gospel?, Childers uses humor effectively to make reading a book on serious matters enjoyable. I highly recommend this book.
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