The way we view ourselves and the way others view us have profound impacts on our sense of identity. In our series looking at Image and Identity, we are looking this week at the influence other people have on our identity? Do we get our identity by seeing the way we are reflected in the eyes of others? Whose voice do we listen to? Who speaks the truth about who we are?
Scriptures:
Proverbs 3:1-12
Proverbs 27:17
Proverbs 22:24-25
Proverbs 19:20
“we can know ourselves only as reflected in the eyes of others. Consequently, our basic endowment of self-appreciation is largely the gift of our parents.”
John Powell SJ, The Secret of Staying in Love, (Texas: Tabor Publications, 1974), p.26
“The first three or four years of life are a period when the toddle’s brain grows to about two thirds its full size….complexity at a greater rate than it ever will again.”
Daniel Goleman, Emotional Intelligence, (New York: Bantam Books, 1995), p.195
“I surrendered myself to the cages of others’ expectations, cultural mandates and institutional allegiances. Until I buried who I was in order to become what I should be. I lost myself when I learned how to please.”
Glennon Doyle, Untamed: Stop Pleasing, Start Living / A Toolkit for Modern Life
“The hardest question we have to ask ourselves in this life is, “Who am I?” Ideally, we answer it for ourselves, but be warned that others will strive to do it for you- so don’t let them.”
Karma Brown, Recipe for the Perfect Wife
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