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Narcissism
According to the
Google definition it means:
1.
excessive interest in or admiration of oneself
and one's physical appearance.
2.
extreme selfishness, with a grandiose view of
one's own talents and a craving for admiration, as characterizing a personality
type.
3.
self-centredness arising from failure to
distinguish the self from external objects, either in very young babies or as a
feature of mental disorder.
This word has popped into my head a lot recently. Maybe it’s due to the
election – let’s face it, the political world sure does have a strong
narcissistic feel about it these days. Whatever the reason behind my word to
life association, the angst this word has inspired in me has forced some
serious contemplation.
What is it to have narcissistic tendencies? i.e. It’s all about ME.
As Christians we know the greatest commandment isn’t about us:
He answered, "'Love the Lord your God
with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with
all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" Luke 10:27 (NIV)
But the
world we live in is narcissistic to the core. I could go into detail about the
ME elements of social media, and the ‘what’s in it for me’ voter platforms, but
what I really want to talk about is the serving vs. being served scale of
Christian selling.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not sitting here in my ivory tower casting
forth my judgment upon the narcissistic masses. I know, full well, that I’ve
subscribed to this evil. I like to think it was always without design, but I do
know I have never gotten away with it. Mostly because the Lord reminders me of
His call to be humble. Like this verse:
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit.
Rather, in humility value others above yourselves. Philippians 2.3 (NIV)
But who does that these days?
We should. We are His servants.
As authors, it’s hard to get the scale right. We all need to sell our
books. We would all love people to read them, and it seems a little crazy to be
sinking a heap of support into someone else’s work when we have so little time
to devote to promoting our own.
And don’t get me wrong—we MUST promote our own books. I’ve always been a
big advocate about working for your own work. My contemplation is regarding the
scale—the balance between accepting support and being supportive of others.
This isn’t a call to finger point or judgement (how can any of us be
guiltless!). It’s a call to contemplation, and, I hope, a call to action. As
our annual Christian writers conference approaches, let us band together to
support each other—all of us. Fiction and non-fiction. Published and
unpublished. Teacher and learner.
And remember: Writing for the glory of God means it’s never about me and
my work, or even you and your work. As Christians, it’s about Him and HIS work.
In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16 (NIV).
Rose, who holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree, was born in North Queensland,
Australia. Her childhood experiences growing up in a small beach community
would later provide inspiration for her first novel, Back to Resolution. Beyond
Resolution and A New Resolution are the second and third books in the
Resolution series.
Back to Resolution won the Bookseller’s Choice award at the 2012 CALEB
Awards, while A New Resolution won the 2013 CALEB Prize for Fiction. She has
also released The Greenfield Legacy, a collaborative novel, written in
conjunction with three other outstanding Australian authors, and has recently
released the standalone novel, Ehvah After.
Her novels are inspired by the love of her coastal home and desire to
produce exciting and contemporary stories of faith for women. Rose resides in
Mackay, North Queensland with her husband and son.
Visit Rose at: https://rosedee.com/
