Investigate the mysteries of ego as Dr. Jerry L. Martin takes you on an insightful journey in this episode of From God To Jerry To You.
God's responses to Jerry's heartfelt prayers reveal profound insights into the nature of ego and humility. Through direct communication with the divine, Jerry navigates the essence of ego when his unique mission from God sparks a surge of pride, momentarily disrupting his connection.
This enlightening episode digs into a profound lesson on the pitfalls of ego, addressing moments of flattery, and reveals transformative lessons along the way.
God's wisdom distinguishes the destructive nature of ego characterized by defiance and self-satisfaction. The episode navigates the delicate balance between genuine self-appreciation and the perils of harmful egotism. It underscores the importance of finding joy in authenticity and cherishing one's gifts without succumbing to ego.
Listeners are warmly invited to engage in this profound exploration of spiritual traps associated with ego, offering a transformative reflection on the enduring challenges of maintaining humility and authentic self-love.
God: An Autobiography, As Told To A Philosopher, is written by Dr. Jerry L. Martin, an agnostic philosopher who heard the voice of God and recorded their conversations. Dr. Jerry L. Martin was head of the National Endowment for the Humanities and of the philosophy department at the University of Colorado at Boulder and founder of Theology Without Walls.
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Scott Langdon [00:00:17] This is God: An Autobiography, The Podcast. A dramatic adaptation and continuing discussion of the book God: An Autobiography, As Told To A Philosopher by Jerry L. Martin. He was a lifelong agnostic, but one day he had an occasion to pray. To his vast surprise, God answered- in words. Being a philosopher, he had a lot of questions, and God had a lot to tell him. Episode 163.
Scott Langdon [00:01:06] Hello and welcome to God: An Autobiography, The Podcast. I'm your host, Scott Langdon, and today in the latest edition of our series, From God to Jerry to You, Jerry recalls God's answer to his questions about ego. It can often be confusing when we receive a compliment or otherwise feel flattered because we don't want our ego to get in the way. We want to guard against false pride and the fall that can come after giving our ego too much to handle. But is ego all bad? Is there any good that can come from receiving praise and recognition from others? In this episode, Jerry shares his experience with God when it comes to this very issue. Here now is Jerry sharing with us God's response to the question: what's wrong with ego? I hope you enjoy the episode.
Dr. Jerry L. Martin [00:02:00] These days, everybody talks about ego. Some people say you've got to get ego out of the way. Other people say you've got to have a healthy ego. It's all very puzzling. What is ego and what's wrong with it? This question became real for me in my experience with God, because I seem to have such a direct line of communications, and then I received a very special mission that I was supposed to do, and it made me feel very, very special. And as soon as that happened, feeling a swell of pride, the line went dead. Before I'd had such an open and vibrant connection with God. At that moment, it was as if someone had simply cut the wires and the line went dead. So I prayed about that and I said, "Lord, it does make me feel superior having this connection with You." And here's what I received in reply. "You are not superior. You have drenched yourself in sin for 50 years. Do not feel superior to anyone. Your only superiority is your willingness to obey. And that I have given you. I opened your heart to love and to Me. You did things to prepare, but I have opened the hearts of some who did not. It is neither deserved nor a gift. It is a fact about Me. I am expressing Myself through you. You are neither more deserving nor more blessed than the paint used in the Mona Lisa." Well, yes, I realized paint is, after all, just paint no matter who the artist is, and I would try to remind myself of that and keep a cold watch on my ego. A lesson learned here, one of the traps of the spiritual life is to the extent you feel open and close and genuinely spiritual, you also can feel pride. And that's a real danger that you have to guard against. Came up again later, this question of ego. I needed a favor from a very prominent intellectual, someone I knew barely, who had no obligations to me whatsoever, but he was the only person who could help in this particular matter. So I gave him a call, and to my amazement, he responded completely helpfully and instantly and generously, and it made me feel flattered that he would respond to me in that way. And so I prayed about that. I said, "Lord, is it wrong for me to feel flattered?" And here is the reply. "No, it is not. This is joy, the joy of being yourself, which is proper to and appropriate for human beings. I want you to be happy to feel the fullness of your own being, its bounty. I blessed you with certain gifts. Of course you recognize them as gifts, as benefits, as talents. That is okay. It is not the same as ego. Ego is destructive, separatist, defiant of My will, self-satisfied and self-lustful. A proper appreciation of yourself opens your heart, binds yourself to me and to others you love. Remember that I love you. I love all human beings without reservation. Ideally, you should love yourself as I love you. Well, what is ego? The sounds as if it's a kind of camouflage, a kind of posturing to cover up the fact that we can't love ourselves as much as we should. And the challenge is to love ourselves as God loves us. Not because we're perfect. God knows we're imperfect, and we know that too, but to love ourselves just as we are little packages of mixed blessings. And that's not so bad. If this speaks to you, please subscribe and like and share it with your friends. It might be just what they need to hear today.
Scott Langdon [00:07:15] Thank you for listening to God: An Autobiography, The Podcast. Subscribe for free today wherever you listen to your podcasts and hear a new episode every week. You can hear the complete dramatic adaptation of God: An Autobiography, As Told To A Philosopher by Jerry L. Martin by beginning with episode one of our podcast and listening through its conclusion with Episode 44. You can read the original true story in the book from which this podcast is adapted, God: An Autobiography, As Told to a Philosopher, available now at amazon.com, and always at godanautobiography.com. Pick up your own copy today. If you have any questions about this or any other episode, please email us at questions@godanautobiography.com, and experience the world from God's perspective as it was told to a philosopher. This is Scott Langdon. I'll see you next time.