Imposter syndrome

https://odb.org/2025/11/20/imposter-syndrome

Romans 12:3–8 (NIV): 3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

Do you ever feel like a fraud? You aren’t alone! In the late 1970s, two researchers identified “imposter syndrome” as the condition of doubting one’s skills, talents, or abilities and interpreting oneself as a fraud. Even successful and brilliant people struggle with inadequacy, worrying that if anyone peeked behind the curtain of their lives, they’d see how much they don’t know.

Paul exhorts the people of the first-century church in Rome to be humble: “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment” (Romans 12:3). We understand the importance of not elevating our abilities. But when we doubt our own value, we go too far, robbing others of the gifts God wants us to use to serve Him. To think of ourselves with “sober judgment” (v. 3) is to have a sane estimation—a realistic regard—for what we offer. Paul nudges us to overcome our hesitancies, to embrace who we are “in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of [us]” (v. 3). In this way, God’s body of believers may be built up (vv. 4-8). (Elisa Morgan, Our Daily Bread, 20 November 2025)

I struggled with lack of confidence most of my life even though I was a top student in my school in a small town in the East Coast of Malaysia. I knew I could study as evidenced by my examinations results. But I was not living in ancient China where scholars were cherished and highly regarded and guaranteed a good station in life. In other words, academic achievement isn’t the sure road to success in present-day life although it is likely one of the most travelled paths used by those who could study.

Life in reality is diverse and complex. Like most people, I was not good at everything. In fact, I was less good at most things and was and still am a slow learner. As I reflect back over the years, I realise that my lack of confidence came from the fear of learning new things and the psychology of thinking that I will surely not do well. This is mostly reinforced by the reality of me failing at most of my earlier attempts. But over time, I developed certain skills through repetitive doing and gained some self confidence. For example, after 30 years of writing reports and papers, I’m now confident of my ability to write.

There is another group of people who are not afraid of anything. They are confident from start and I think they usually don’t fail as much or failures just don’t deter or erode their confidence. They just keep on doing the things they do and do them well. I’ll say in my immediate family, everyone is like that except me. They all do well quickly, while I’m the slow one in most things.

However, the danger of those who are always confident is that they may, but not necessarily always, think too highly of themselves and forget the Lord behind them. Always succeeding at what they do and doing well may over inflate their own abilities, partly because of their high confidence and the results they see. Far from thinking of themselves as a fraud, they are at the other end of the spectrum.

The message this morning is not to be like me, having a perpetual lack of confidence but neither think too highly of oneself. But think of ourselves with sober judgment as Paul suggests – everyone has their God-given gifts and talents to build up the body of Christ. We are all a peg in a kingdom full of unique openings to fit each of us, each a special brick in the wall to support and carry of the weight of one another. In fact, be confident in the Lord for He has a specific plan and purpose for each of our lives!