Who are you today?

Our moods and emotions fluctuate with changing context, situations and happenings. The actual ‘you’ is invisible to people. Who you are today is what was shaped by the decisions made yesterday. All decisions are shaped by what is known as the Core 8 Human drives, a psychological framework often used to understand human motivation. It is classified under these broad areas: 

Relational Drives

The Drive to Bond: The innate desire to form connections, build relationships, and feel a sense of belonging with others.

The Drive to be Known: The need for others to recognize our true selves, validating our identity and presence in a social group.

Intellectual and Personal Growth Drives:

The Drive to Know: Often referred to as the "drive to learn" or "comprehend," this is fueled by curiosity and the desire to make sense of the world around us.

The Drive to Grow: The pursuit of self-improvement, skill mastery, and the realization of one's full potential. 

Achievement and Impact Drives

The Drive to Acquire: The impulse to obtain physical objects, as well as intangible status, power, and influence.

The Drive to Accomplish: The motivation to achieve specific goals, complete tasks, and feel a sense of mastery or "competence".

The Drive for Significance: The need to feel important, unique, or that one’s life and work have a meaningful impact on the world.

Survival and Stability Drives

The Drive for Safety: Also called the "drive to defend," this is the baseline need to protect ourselves, our loved ones, and our property from harm.

Why is this important for you to know? Because then you will be able to dive beneath the surface of your problem to understand what is driving your behaviors. Drives are like appetites—they must be satisfied. Many people have chosen illegitimate and even illegal ways of satisfying these drives. In so doing they have formed uncontrollable and insatiable  habits, lusts, and addictions. When these drives are not brought under the Lordship of Christ, they will cause you to lose control of your soul and form unhealthy attachments to satisfy your longings. This is what happened to the prodigal son in the Bible. His drives were not bad; it was the way he attempted to satisfy them that led to his self-destructive behavior.

Mastery in your life starts with mastery of your thoughts, which is equivalent to self-discipline. If you don’t control what you think, you can’t control what you do and who you become. We have all heard of the phrase “mind over matter.” John Irving, a novelist and Academy Award–winning screenwriter, once wrote, “Your memory is a monster; you forget—it doesn’t. It simply files things away. It keeps things for you or hides things from you—and summons them to your recall with a will of its own.”

The Bible states, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.  Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” You do not need to be a product of your environment or imprisoned by circumstances. Self-discipline enables you to control your thoughts so that you control your destiny. 

God can perform psychological and emotional laser surgery with His Word. When you understand your sinful nature and ask for forgiveness Jesus will cleanse you and transform you. The Bible says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all our unrighteousness.”. May you be led by His spirit and reflect His nature. Remember, you are a child of God. 

 

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The freedom of letting people misunderstand you!

Do you catch yourself trying to explain to those who misunderstand you? It can be anyone in our circle of influence, and we become impulsive about this because we don’t want to be seen as cold, arrogant, or ungrateful. Misunderstanding looks like people wanting to maintain the story they’re committed to — about who you are, what role you play, how life works — they must filter you through their own projections. When you stop expending energy to constantly manage narratives, you free yourself from the exhausting need for external validation and claim your peace. People see us through their own experiences, insecurities, and expectations. Their opinions are often reflections of their inner world—not accurate summaries of who we are. And no amount of explaining can change how someone chooses to see you. Having said that, there are times we must explain ourselves especially to our loved ones, should there be a need when you are being wrongly misunderstood.

Jesus was frequently misunderstood by the public, religious leaders, and even His own inner circle of disciples. These misunderstandings usually occurred because people took His spiritual teachings literally, or because His mission clashed with their cultural and political expectations. Jesus was the fulfilment of all the prophecies told over 600 years ago. Jesus healed the sick; the lame walked, the blind saw, the deaf and mute spoke and could hear, lepers cleansed and healed and the dead were raised yet people misunderstood Him to be a political competitor, assuming He is going to build a new empire. People expected Jesus would use the same divine power to subdue nations, establish political headquarters and overthrow their opponent. But when Jesus the God of love was in the business of transforming lives, giving hope of another kingdom, which is life after death, it became difficult for His enemies to handle Him anymore. They were offended by Him. 

If you are following Christ, people will misunderstand you. There are names people attach to Christians as “rice-bag Christians” blaming early missionaries who helped the poor, needy, hungry and vulnerable to have dignity in the society. Today, there are many followers of Christ from the around the world who are persecuted and robbed of their rights to live. They don’t fight back; they either go on a silent protest or pray for the  persecutors. Consequently, they are once again misunderstood as weak minority and the ones who are following foreign religion. My dear friends don’t worry if people misunderstand you for being and doing good. It is not easy to suffice with many explanations to convince anyone. This world cannot handle truth, love and righteousness. But God who understands your motives and intentions will know who you are.  

In the story of Jesus when the Jews accused Him with all kinds of allegation and demanded the Roman government to torture and crucify Him, Jesus allowed them to misunderstand Him for the bigger picture to unravel. The Bible records when Jesus died on the cross of Calvary, all thought it was the end of the story except the Roman Centurion who after witnessing Jesus on the cross exclaimed, “Truly He is the son of God”. That was not all, after the third day Jesus rose from the grave, which took the entire history to a new level. The misunderstood God proved to the entire world that He has the power over life and death. My dear friends, I encourage you to not give up on your situation and explain yourself to people who misunderstand you. The resurrected Christ is the answer to your situation because He is the only one who understands you perfectly. Do you want to know Him more?

 

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Spiraling Out of control!

The “solid foundation” we were dependent on in life suddenly gives away beneath us and crises hits us like a sudden tsunami. It can be in the form of finance, job, family, health or relationship. These crises may build gradually or hit us like a thunderbolt. We scramble to set things right within our preferred time frame whereas our emotions or grief take longer to settle than the speed in which we face our crises. We long for the crises to blow over at the earliest and we seek help from different quarters. At this point, God is also part of the option. We want the crisis to end and that too, to end now. Prayers go unanswered and we cry out “Why me?”.

These hard-pressed times also pose dried up resources and extremely limited options. Our desperate efforts become intense. Even worse the current crisis snowballs into new problems disorienting you and completely throwing you off guard with no relief in sight. Techniques like “breath in, breathe out”, “just don't look at the problem”, “relax”, “this too will pass away” – are unhelpful. We seek logical explanation by comparing ourselves to others and wondering “why I am suffering so much compared to many who seem to enjoy life?”. The question of "Why" becomes paramount. We soon start blaming everyone and everything including God. 

From a Christian perspective, losing control is a profound invitation to shift our focus from circumstances to God's character. Rather than striving in anxiety, believers are encouraged to practice active surrender, trust in God’s sovereignty, and anchor themselves in His promises. Given below are some practical ways to deal with your crisis:

• The Bible calls us to shift focus from circumstances to sovereignty:

When everything feels out of control, it is easy to let anxiety spiral, but the Bible reminds believers that God is never surprised. He remains on the throne, and what feels like chaos is already under His authority. Acknowledging that you are not in control, but God is, removes the impossible burden of having to perfectly manage life.

• The power of intentional surrender.

Rather than giving in to the urge to force outcomes, Christianity emphasizes yielding to God's plan. The Apostle Paul in the Bible gave a practical blueprint for this: instead of worrying, believers are instructed to take their anxieties to God in prayer with thanksgiving. This active release—often referred to as "casting your burdens"—hands the steering wheel back to the Creator.

• Discovering the peace of Christ.

Biblical peace is not the absence of trouble, but rather the presence of Christ amid it. When life feels chaotic, God promises a peace that "transcends all understanding"—a supernatural calm that holds steady, regardless of whether your situation immediately changes.

• Trusting the "Bigger Picture"

The promise in the Bible tells us that God works all things together for the good for those who love Him. Even when situations make no sense and seem devastating, we are encouraged to walk by faith rather than mere rational explanations.

Dear Friends, your hope will not be wasted if you learn to trust Jesus, commit to know Him and accept Him in your life not as a religion but as a relationship. Jesus is the true Messiah, because He encountered and came out victorious from the world's toughest problem - Death. 

The Bible states this as a biggest sacrifice for human beings. He died for our sins to offer forgiveness and freedom from all guilt and become the children of God. Jesus raised people from death during ministering to people and He rose from the dead. Whether your trouble and crisis were gradual or sudden, you will not be destroyed. You will live because of Christ. Jesus who claimed, “because I live you will live also."

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Emotions don’t escape notice!

The booming digital revolution reads you like an open book with cameras capturing your every emotion. If you are a sport lover you would notice the genius display of different emotions of people watching from the stadium. There are systems that use real-time AI image capture and audio analysis to analyze audience and crowd moods, enabling live broadcasts to dynamically switch camera feeds to maximize emotional engagement.

Modern AI can scan faces, measure micro-expressions, and track bodily metrics to determine a person's exact psychological state. Mobile devices have built-in sensors to map dozens of facial points and interpret discrete emotions with up to 68.3% accuracy—often surpassing human ratings. There are even apps that utilize background smartphone cameras to monitor facial micro-expressions for subtle frowns or depressive states, translating them into mood maps. Technology can make us physically close but emotionally far. Social media highlights the external best moments but hides the internal mess of a person.

Sadly, in today’s digital age, emotions are a commodity. This leads to deep isolation, making many feel that their struggles are ignored or invalidated. There are many who silently struggle and face challenges which they cannot show nor share. They brilliantly hide it under a smile yet battling with the fact whether their struggles are even noticed by the world.

Cameras can fail to capture the pain a heart bears, but it does not escape its Creator, a God who sees everything. The cameras may not always capture the deep emotions hiding in the corner of the human heart, but Jesus who is a living God (as He was resurrected from the grave after three days) knows exactly the state of your heart and what you are going through. 

When this God incarnated on this earth, the Bible records that Jesus went about doing good. The lame, the blind, the deaf, and all kinds of sick people came to Him to be healed. It is recorded in the Bible, “At sunset, the people brought to Jesus all who had various kinds of sickness, and laying his hands on each one, he healed them.”.  There is also a situation recorded in the Bible where the whole crowd was pressing on Him to hear from Him and to be healed. In such a situation was a lady from the crowd with a unique health condition made her way in the crowd and touched Jesus’ garment and the Bible states she was healed instantaneously. As she was about to slip away, Jesus stopped and asked, “Who touched me?” It sounded funny because a huge crowd was already thronging Him. The story states, she was terrified, came before Jesus and confessed that she touched Him. Jesus sent her in peace. Nothing could stop God from capturing the attention of the single individual when they are in pain.

You will never go unnoticed! Here is a God who understands your pain and your situation. There is even an incident in the Bible where it talks about Lazarus who was dead and buried for four days. Jesus loved that family a lot. This is a story where Lazarus was raised alive from His grave after four days, by Jesus. But then when He saw Lazarus’ sisters, Martha and Mary sobbing, Jesus was troubled and it records, “Jesus Wept”. He is such a unique God not only because of His resurrection but also because if His ability to restore you. If our emotions can be predicted by mere man-made camera, how much more a God who knows your exact pain and struggle and is ever willing to restore you.  

 

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You don’t need to be busy to be valuable!

Today a busy person poses himself as valuable and worth more than someone who is quiet with less happening. Busyness is frequently treated as a status symbol rather than a reliable measure of true value or impact. Society has conditioned many people to tie their self-worth directly to their visible productivity, leading them to boast about packed schedules and constant motion to gain external approval. 

Research shows that toxic productivity culture has led 40% of workers to believe burnout comes with success. People’s unhealthy drive to stay productive affects their mental and physical health, personal relationships, and life quality.  Toxic productivity comes from an obsessive need to work constantly and accomplish tasks, whatever the cost to mental and physical health. Unlike healthy productivity that values balanced achievement and progress, toxic productivity comes from believing that your worth depends only on what you produce.

Our society sees busyness as a badge of honor instead of something potentially harmful. Studies show 61% of professionals think looking busy makes them appear more valuable. People often take on too much or talk about their packed schedules just to get others’ approval. This mindset becomes dangerous because it makes unhealthy work habits seem normal and pushes people to keep up an impossible pace.

The drive for productivity creates an odd situation. People work non-stop to feel accomplished but never feel satisfied — they just feel bad for not doing more. This pattern keeps repeating itself. It hurts both mind and body while making real fulfillment impossible.

You don’t need to be busy to be valuable. If you read the life history of Jesus, you would notice Jesus didn’t hustle to prove His worth- He moved slowly, intentionally, with peace. Your stillness isn’t wasted time. It’s sacred space. You’re still worthy even when you are not producing. 

What have we achieved more prior to few decades back when most of the thing was manual and conventional? Actually, not much.  We are forced to sacrifice so many things to make the ends meet. Life was peaceful then, people enjoyed quietness and better mental and emotional health compared to now. Today, we are working more, to earn more, to build better savings and have a big bank balance, just to find out that it has not helped much. We are constantly restless, that defines the age today. 

Ask God, Christ Jesus to bless you with quietness and rest. The Bible states, “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength.” (Isaiah 30:15 Bible)  We keep pushing our edges as we are busy to sabotage our sanctity and sanity. While you ask Christ Jesus to help your shortcomings and repent from everything that hurts your body and soul you would find rest and salvation. I understand the demands of life is too much in our time, but you can reach unto God who invites us for rest.  The Bible emphasizes that “in quietness and trust is our strength.” Busyness may look like you have gained great worth, but true strength is found in quietness. You are valuable because you are made in His (God’s) image, therefore you don’t need to struggle to prove your self-worth or try harder to make things happen. Christ Jesus has provided all that you require to sustain you in this life and life yet to come with abundance and joy. Try to know Him more personally, a God who is a resurrected savior. 

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The game of comparison!

The problem of man is not having a need or meeting the need but comparing oneself with someone. The compared standard may be high to achieve; hence he/she ends up murmuring and disappointed. We have no dearth of comparisons. We have neighbors, friends, social media, colleagues to make us feel inferior… Man today is not content.  

Contentment for people have always been measurement by material things as they are tangibles. A recent news recorded a man in India who came to Dr Sunny Garg consultant oncologist and complained suffering from severe insomnia and anxiety. He said, "Doctor, I think I'm very poor. I can't sleep at night.". He earns around $42,000 (Rs 40 Lakh a year) drives a BMW, lives comfortably, and still says he feels poor. Dr Sunny Garg described this phenomenon as a form of "modern poverty", not the absence of money, but the inability to feel satisfied because expectations rise faster than income. 

According to the doctor, the man's reference point has shifted dramatically over the years. Instead of comparing himself with people from his hometown or those with more traditional careers, he now measures his success against startup founders, entrepreneurs, and social media personalities who have accumulated wealth worth tens or even hundreds of crores at a young age.

"Statistically, he's in the top 1% of earners in India. Yet he feels poor. Why? Because his reference point has shifted. Earlier, he compared himself to the neighbor in his village whose son worked as a clerk. Now he compares himself to a 28-year-old on LinkedIn who sold a startup and is sitting on Rs 80 crore," the doctor explained. Comparison is a race with no finish line. No matter how much you earn, there will always be someone richer. Contentment is one of the things money cannot buy.

There is also another problem with people who earn sufficiently yet find themselves in debt because of EMIs (monthly installments). Sometimes expenses are more than the income flow. A big percentage of people are trapped debt ridden in this way. I urge you to plan your income with wisdom and discretion. 

Don’t forget to acknowledge that you are blessed with a life and are surviving when millions ceased to exist. If you are still breathing, you are privileged.  You may have all the money you need and still never be satisfied and live securely. Position, money and things are never meant to satisfy human lives because you are made with a soul. Man can never be content with worldly things or religious obligations. Man needs to find His Creator not the one whom he has created as god but the true Saviour of your soul.  

The Bible records one of the best prayers from Agur son of Jakeh from the book of Proverbs 30:8 (Bible) "Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread". Anxiety increases when you have too little or too much. When God is your portion, you can stay content. King David in the book of Psalms acknowledges, "Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup of blessing; you hold my future". Jesus is not an idea of God but God, who was resurrected from death and is alive, a fact that cannot be easily ignored. When you trust this Jesus, you will not be apprehensive and find a need to compare with someone whom you assume to be richer than you but can stay content because He promised to never leave you nor forsake you in any circumstance.  

Resources: NEWS

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What do you fear losing?

Psychologically, the utmost fear of humans is losing loved ones to death or separation, followed closely by fear of losing health, control, financial security, and identity/cognitive ability. When you are in abundance, it builds your confidence, yet you can still be plagued by fear of losing it, subconsciously. It is completely natural to feel anxious about losing something you deeply value, whether it is a relationship, a skill, or a success you have worked hard to achieve. We start our life to acquire things starting from knowledge, skill, career, family and financial resource. Later, we strive to sustain them for our security. Surprisingly fear builds proportionally. 

Humans naturally cling to the things they love, forgetting that everything ultimately belongs to God. The fear arises when we mistakenly view gifts as our permanent possessions rather than blessings that are meant to be well stewarded. From a Christian perspective, the fear of losing things—whether material possessions, relationships, or status—stems from a fundamental human struggle between seeking earthly security and trusting in God’s provision. It is usually the misplaced security that leads to placing one's identity and sense of safety in temporary, worldly things instead of relying in the eternal unchanging nature of God. This can lead to anxiety and fear of loss.

Once we understand that we all would eventually cease to exist from this earth would shape our perspective about this present world and eternity. For all who understand the Christian worldview have a strong reason to believe that they will live for eternity as recorded in the Holy scripture, The Holy Bible. Frank Turek puts it beautifully when he says, “Christianity did not begin with a book, it began with an event, the resurrection.”. The resurrection of Jesus changed history. Christians believe this greatest event is the hope for current earthly existence and for future eternal life. Living with this eternal perspective will change your worldview and eradicate the fear of losing whatever concerns you. 

Christianity is not just a story, but about a God, Christ Jesus who incarnated to be human, walked amongst the people, did the natural and supernatural activities and gave the eternal perspective of life after death. People are sometimes stuck with a religion and with its rituals and duties that they no more understand God nor life better.  Erich Fromm states, “when people can’t handle God anymore, they turn to religion.” We equal God to religion and end up being religious without knowing God. Recalling to memory that Jesus defeated death and returned to life, infuses each day of our life with glory, reshaping the familiar into signposts of the new creation. The resurrection doesn’t simply promise transformation in some distant future, rather it brings relevancy to the present, infusing the world we inhabit-here and now-with the eternal.

Only this strong verified eternal perspective can remove the fear of losing what you have. You are a child of God, loved by a resurrected living God. He cares for you and intends to bless you with confidence. You can right away do a small prayer and ask Christ to give you the hope and confidence in Him. You don’t have to live in fear anymore. 

 

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