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As quoted from the book "Victor - Breaking Free From a Victim-Based Society" by John H. Hovis Page 69.
Corruption causes damage in so many ways. Just think about the issues of corruption that has come out from time to time from people in important positions. The damage isn't limited solely to the job that person had. In some cases the damage from corrupt actions reaches out to touch people you would never expect. Corruption is an action that can cause victims in so many different ways.
What I have found is that corruption is so much more than just someone doing something illegal or immoral to better their position of power. Corruption is a real possibility when we let the roles we play be tied so closely to who we want people to see us to be. When identity is tied to roles, the possibility of corruption can't be ruled out even in the most virtuous of positions.
This is the case in any position where authority is concerned. Elected officials, governmental bureaucrats, business magnates and CEO's are obvious positions where the link between identity and corruption is a real possibility. Often overlooked, when the possibility of corruption is concerned, are church leaders, teachers, supervisors and even parents! Now I think some of you are really paying attention. Parents and corruption - really - how can that be?
For me the definition of corruption that plays into the discussion of victim vs victor is one that includes any personal damage that can be caused to those under the authority of another. Parents definitely fit that definition. It is when we forget who we are that that damage can really happen in ways that can really bring victim thinking to the forefront.
When we let the roles we play be part of the process of defining who we are, corruption needs to be something that we are on the lookout for. Let's stick with the parenting issue for a bit to develop this point.
Let's say that I have a strong belief in the thought that parenting is a critical part to who I am. If that is the case, I'm going to do whatever it takes to be seen as a good parent. It is when others recognize how well I have performed as a parent that my identity gets confirmed.
Now let's say my children aren't behaving in a manner that best promotes my parenting skills. It doesn't have to be that the kids go off the deep end - a slip up in their straight A academics or failing to make that traveling team or doing any of the hundreds of things kids will do to be kids becomes a major affront to my identity. That puts me in the position of doing things that can cause damage to my kids, my marriage and even to others around me as I defend my position as a good parent for identity building reasons.
That's the kind of corruption I'm talking about that can happen when we let our roles be what defines our identity. I'm in no way saying that we should take our responsibilities of authority over others lightly. It is when we allow that responsibility to be co opted in identity building ways that victimizing events can occur by the actions we undertake to salvage the view others might have of us. Allowing our identity to be defined by what we do is not something that we can't support very long, particularly when we are in a position of authority over others in this world.
Today's Bible reading hits it on the head when it comes to letting roles define who we are.
It is dangerous to be concerned with what others think of you, but if you trust the Lord, you are safe. Proverbs 29:25 (GNT)
Corruption happens when we are overly concerned by what others think. When we look to roles to define our identity it is because we want the approval of others to come from the identity that we work to promote. The danger comes when the roles we look to to make our identity be what we want it to be, aren't working that well. The danger we face is that victim thinking can take hold in ways that makes us into victimizers to those around us.
Our only hope to side step the corruption that can happen around us is to let our identity be what God has spoken into our lives. That identity as God's Child has nothing to do with what we do in this world. The roles we play, though important to us personally, have no bearing on who God says we are. More importantly, our God-give identity isn't something that is subject to the whims of what other people think.
I've heard it put this way, "What God knows about me is more important than what others think about me." We all have a choice today. Am I going to be swayed by what God knows I am or what I do to try and prove who I am to others. If you choose the the second option, victim thinking is bound to be the result and corruption is a real possibility.
By choosing to live out the life of a victor God has made possible for you, you are stepping into a place where roles can take on real authority in your life. Roles were never meant to define your identity. Your identity is suppose to empower your roles. That can only happen when we care more about what God says about us to our face than what people say behind our backs.
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