Different groups elevate various men and women to a status that is close to god-like. I'll name a few important people and let the reader imagine if they walked up to the person and began a conversation. What would you feel?
John Piper. Mark Driscoll. Bill Gothard. Doug Phillips. Bill Gates. Barack Obama (any president for that matter). Incongruous Circumspection. Scott Hamilton. Julia Roberts. Michael Moore. Julie Andrews. Warren Buffet. Kevin James. Melissa Gilbert. Sean Connery. Michael Jordan. The Pope. Bill O'Reilly. Pat Sajak. Jay Leno. David Letterman.
I just rattled off twenty-one names. Some of them elicit deep emotional fear in me. Others, like Julie Andrews, I would walk up to and ask out on a date with nary a heart flutter. I imagine Scott Hamilton agreeing to go get a beer with me and my bride and spending an evening wrapped in laughter. Michael Jordan would be creepy but I would just show him my perfectly sewn underpants to break the ice.
But, the ones that dredge up wells of fear in me are the religious ones. The Pipers. The Driscolls. The Doug Phillips. They exude a sort of confidence in what they believe that appears airtight. Never would they entertain the thought of talking to an imbecile like me - a non-religious, reasoning person.
I am convinced I am incorrect - at least to a point. I still think Mark Driscoll would try as hard as he can to belittle anyone who disagrees with him to their face. But it would be easy to stay confident in who I am and let him spout his immaturity and then work the conversation toward a different goal. He would be fun to spar with. Or, John Piper. He would be very confident in what he has to say but would find great pleasure in trying to expound on his beliefs so as to fence you in and win the fight. That would be quite a challenge, but I think we could have a laugh and part ways - me, a heathen, and he a Christian, confident that he just washed the blood of a sinner off his hands.
These big dudes and prominent women are very good at what they do and yet, most of them are just people - like you and me. Go out and be confident in who you are. Invite the president over for dinner and serve ribs with white cloth napkins and no silverware. There are many creative ways to break the ice. Some of the most confident people are the most insecure.
You can do it.
I. C.
John Piper. Mark Driscoll. Bill Gothard. Doug Phillips. Bill Gates. Barack Obama (any president for that matter). Incongruous Circumspection. Scott Hamilton. Julia Roberts. Michael Moore. Julie Andrews. Warren Buffet. Kevin James. Melissa Gilbert. Sean Connery. Michael Jordan. The Pope. Bill O'Reilly. Pat Sajak. Jay Leno. David Letterman.
I just rattled off twenty-one names. Some of them elicit deep emotional fear in me. Others, like Julie Andrews, I would walk up to and ask out on a date with nary a heart flutter. I imagine Scott Hamilton agreeing to go get a beer with me and my bride and spending an evening wrapped in laughter. Michael Jordan would be creepy but I would just show him my perfectly sewn underpants to break the ice.
But, the ones that dredge up wells of fear in me are the religious ones. The Pipers. The Driscolls. The Doug Phillips. They exude a sort of confidence in what they believe that appears airtight. Never would they entertain the thought of talking to an imbecile like me - a non-religious, reasoning person.
I am convinced I am incorrect - at least to a point. I still think Mark Driscoll would try as hard as he can to belittle anyone who disagrees with him to their face. But it would be easy to stay confident in who I am and let him spout his immaturity and then work the conversation toward a different goal. He would be fun to spar with. Or, John Piper. He would be very confident in what he has to say but would find great pleasure in trying to expound on his beliefs so as to fence you in and win the fight. That would be quite a challenge, but I think we could have a laugh and part ways - me, a heathen, and he a Christian, confident that he just washed the blood of a sinner off his hands.
These big dudes and prominent women are very good at what they do and yet, most of them are just people - like you and me. Go out and be confident in who you are. Invite the president over for dinner and serve ribs with white cloth napkins and no silverware. There are many creative ways to break the ice. Some of the most confident people are the most insecure.
You can do it.
I. C.
Ah- this reminds me of when I got all tongue-tied meeting Donald Rumsfeld. Yet whatever you think of his politics or even him, he was gracious (he's a politician, guess he has to be lol) and approachable.
ReplyDeleteI learned from that, that the only way we get star-struck is by letting our fears control us rather than the facts. The fact is, we are all equally human, and we only have as much power as other people choose to give us. Therefore it follows that we can choose whether or not to allow others power over us.
It can be pretty easy for me to mouth off in a blog; in real life, I hope I can learn to be as honest without letting myself take other people's negative judgement on board. It's encouraging to be reminded "some of the most confident people are the most insecure." (Bullies, btw, are often some of the least secure people.)
Thank you. Perfect follow-up to this post. Welcome, by the way!
ReplyDeleteWhat is with the asian dating add? I am not into mail ordering a bride. Wives are too much work.
ReplyDeleteHaha! I know. I've seen it pop up once in a while.
ReplyDeleteI'd ask Scott if he could still do a backwards flip on skates?
ReplyDeleteI met Sandra Day O'Connor once, she's a very gracious lady. I was wearing my smurf blue uniform and felt like a fool. But then I felt like a fool more than once working as a federal smurf.
Wow! There is a story there. I smell it! You should write a post for me on being a...um..federal smurf!
ReplyDeleteI ranted on my smurfdom on my blog. It was cathartic. I was never so happy as to say adios when I turned in the last piece of my uniform and left the building.
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