Affirmation
This year for Lent, I am reading Christ in the Wilderness by Bishop Stephen Cottrell, published by SPCK, reflecting on Stanley Spencer’s paintings of that title.
I’m not necessarily going to blog every day on it, just when something leaps out at me – and they will be thoughts rather than full blog posts.
Yesterday, I shared this thought on Twitter:
That quote is from page 4 – made me think…
Pam's Perambulation 
if that’s true – that no human being can thrive without affirmation – then a serious lack of affirmation can become a hunger for approval and lead to working to gain that approval. The need for affirmation, then, is in itself not sinful. The warped attempts to earn approval can be… but if the need itself can be legitimately met then the sinful response will dissipate.
I think we all need affirmation to blossom and grow. So we each need to be giving it freely to others for their well being
Is affirmation a positive acceptance of who you are as distinct from approval being about what you do or achieve?
That’s a helpful thought, thank you, it’s a ‘thank you for being you’. Though there’s no harm in affirming what people do too – whether or not it is successful or to our liking. Affirmation is the building up and encouraging.
affirm – Declare one’s support for; uphold or defend
https://www.google.co.uk/search?source=ig&rlz=&q=affirm&oq=affirm&gs_l=igoogle.3..0l10.1169975.1171343.0.1172130.6.5.0.1.1.0.196.592.3j2.5.0…0.0…1ac.1.WBiRogAciWA#hl=en&tbo=u&q=affirm&tbs=dfn:1&sa=X&ei=jwcdUeDBFaen0AXvoIDoAw&ved=0CDEQkQ4&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.&bvm=bv.42452523,d.d2k&fp=343b27e98ff5872&biw=1525&bih=712
yes – I don’t think I had a clear definition in my mind when I commented earlier – but that chimes with what I was trying to get at.