Editorial August 10, 2015 Issue

The stubbornness that does yield

David C. Kennedy

Sometimes we seem to be our own worst enemies. Stubborn traits and tendencies, contrary to our highest desires, often seem to hang on like ineradicable weeds. In the Bible even Paul laments, “What I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I” (Romans 7:15).

What we “hate” may not always be “big” things. Claims of psychology, temper, temperament, or disposition may sometimes hold us back in seemingly small ways, right when we’re wanting to move forward spiritually. For example, we may react angrily when we know we should be calm, patient, or forgiving. We may act in a self-centered or insensitive way, when we’ve been deeply wanting to express more kindness and love. Or we may habitually respond to challenges with dismay, hesitation, or pessimism, rather than with an expectation of progress and healing that would help us go forward and find healing more readily.

Because the body, as well as our experience in general, objectifies what’s going on in our thought, it’s well to be aware of these tendencies and not let them just hang around and fester. But at the same time, it’s equally important to realize that they have no actual foundation in us. They were never part of some material package handed to us by heredity, expanded on during years of upbringing, and stamped with the label, “This is who I am”—because there never was such a package.

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