I don’t know if this forum is still open and I don’t know, Jonathan, if you will read this. But not knowing never stopped me.
So, thank you Jonathan for your talk. I felt it related to me in many many ways. The line that jumped out at me was, “imposter syndrome”. I read of the recommended book but continue to wrestle with this. Like Jacob, I walk with a limp. I limp around a lot at UConn where I’m sure any day now someone will find out that I’m not professor of material despite the fact that I’ve been teaching there for 40 years. I received an email last week from the student thanking me for giving her a passing grade. She had missed the deadline for the extension, and finally turned in an adequate paper that brought her weighted average up to 35%. But I know if I failed her that she lose her financial aid and that would be the end of her college education. I told her I had blind faith in her and I‘m convinced that because of who she is, she will make an important contribution some day. It would be difficult to explain to the administration why I failed three students with the same average but passed her - based on “blind faith”. I’ve written dozens of letters of recommendation to the UConn School of Medicine and so far, no one has identified me as an imposter. Rev Ev did not identify me as an imposter when she offered to initiate me into speaking in tongues. But the fact that it didn’t work for me is further evidence. . .
no one called the fire department that night. Your talk convinced me that maybe God can do something good with an imposter. If God loves Jonathan, may God likes me too.
Your talk motivated me to do whatever is necessary to become more like those CFO youth group leaders and art teachers who accepted you and loved you as either Adele or Jonathan. Thanks.