Summary

The impostor syndrome is real! Pride is real! Sometimes, I (we) may feel like we don’t belong! Other times, we may feel that “there’s no one like us! Both extremes can be problematic. What’s the solution? Believe that God has prepared us to stand before great men and women! But walk in the position with a humble heart.  So help me, God!

In this episode of Expounding God’s Word with Dr. Abi, I’m expounding God’s Word on capturing our thoughts when those thoughts come up. Scriptural reference: 2 Corinthians 10:5 AMP #hangingoutwithdrabi #expoundinggodswordwithdrabi — Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/drabiadeleke/message

“Expand!

You are not small.

Your Foremothers did not do what they did so you could occupy small!”

― Malebo Sephodi

Transcription

Hello, everybody, this is Abi Adeleke, Dr. Abi Adeleke and on this episode of expounding God’s word, this week, and not just this week, but something that has been on my mind for a little while. And that is a topic that a lot of people are familiar with. It’s called the “imposter syndrome”. And some people spell the imposter with a “tor”, some people spell it with a “ter”, but it doesn’t matter how you spell it, it is something that is real. And oftentimes, that’s the feeling that you don’t belong, or that your success is just a fluke, and you know that, you know, at some point, somebody is going to find you out that you’re, you’re not who you say you are, or that you don’t deserve something what you have achieved, or you don’t deserve, where you find yourself in. Or sometimes you may be in an environment or in a gathering, or you just feel like you don’t belong here, you’re not as qualified or as educated as everybody else that is in that particular room.

So you know, when you look at it, it is a real thing. And not only is it a real thing, it does impact both men and women, even though studies indicate that it does affect women even more than men than it does affect men. But it’s still a real thing. When you look on the other side of the imposter syndrome, you may look at the fact that they something also called pride, pride is also real. So on one extreme, maybe the imposter symptom of feeling that you don’t belong, on the other side actually might also be the feeling of pride and all that. Well, you’re, you’re you’re all that and much more that, you know, there’s nobody as smart as you. And, you know, and there’s nobody who has attained all the things that you have attained.

So, you know, on both sides of the spectrum of the extreme sides of each of the spectrum, it is a real thing. And as I was thinking through the week, I was just thinking about certain things that have happened on uncertain, you know, just, just stuff. And that was one of the things that kept coming to my mind that, you know, as we navigate the marketplace of life, as we and as a person of color as as a black woman in particular, sometimes you achieved certain things, and you almost feel like, Oh, my God, you know, I don’t belong here, I’m not as smart or, you know, there’s nobody in this room that looks like me, I’m like a token in the middle of everybody else. But I wanted to encourage you with this thing, I want to encourage you that it .

Don’t feel bad. You know, there’s a reason why you’re where you are, there’s a reason why you have been called into certain types of leadership. There’s a reason why you’re, you’ve been given this accolade or you’ve been given this particular assignment or this particular position, and you’re worth it, you know, wherever you find yourself, wherever you find yourself sitting at the table where you normally would not be invited to sit at the table, you are worth it. And that’s why you’re sitting at that table. And you know, sometimes they start, you know, there’s, there’s, there’s that feeling that, Oh, my God, you know, does everybody else looks different. I’m the only one of my kind in this particular room, maybe it’s in a room full of leaders or in a room of, you know, people that are up and coming out, you know, whatever different, whatever terminology we give to those things. 

But I wanted to encourage you this this afternoon, as we expand God’s water, you are worth it. But you know, one thing that we need to do is to believe that God has prepared us for to stand before great men, there’s a scripture that says that, you know, you will not stand before because you’ve been diligent, you will not stand before man, man, you will stand before kings, and you will stand before queens to stand before great men or you stand before great women. But also, as you do that, and as you have that realization and as you meditate on those scriptures. also work in a position with a humble heart. You know, always remain humble. You know, I know in Nigeria, we make this joke and we say, “I’m humble”. But I said there’s a truth to that, that “I remain humble”. And it’s very important that as God  begins to promote you, it is very important that as you begin to find yourself in places that you probably frankly never ever, ever thought you would ever be that you remain humble. Humble, humility, humility, sorry, is a really, really important thing.

So as I end this particular segment of expounding God’s Word, what we talked about the other like, I wanted to just remind you of this particular scripture. And the Scripture is found in Second Corinthians chapter 10. And verse five, Second Corinthians, chapter 10, and verse five. And I’m reading it out the Amplified Version, or you can read it in context as well to see where you are, what he’s saying here. And he says, Yeah, he says, “We are destroying sophisticated arguments, and every exalted and proud thing that sets itself up against a true knowledge of God. And we are taking every thought and purpose captive to the obedience of Christ”. 

What it says it in nutshell, is, as you start to take your thoughts captive, when those thoughts of, of being an imposter come across you, and you start to take those thoughts captive. It strengthens you to say you’ve been you’ve been designed for a time like this, you’ve been built up for a time like this. You belong, wherever you find yourself in whether it’s the “C suite” or the “E suite” or whatever it is, or in positions of leadership. You belong, you’re not an imposter. You are there because God has called you to be there. So again, this is Dr. Abi Adeleke, On today’s episode of expounding God’s word, reminding you to hang in there, despite everything that is going on around you, hang in there, and, and just stay safe. keep staying safe and keep using the wisdom that God has given you and Shalom. I will talk to you very soon. Stay safe. Bye bye.

“Now go
Occupy spaces
Fill the room
Walk in your crown”
― Malebo Sephodi

Thank you for hanging out with me! Dr. Abi Adeleke, #hangingoutwithdrabi on Spotify