The higher a man is in grace, the lower he will be in his own esteem. - Charles Spurgeon
Graphic pictures below. NSFW
Sheri Rose Shepherd is a best selling author and speaker and much of what she writes is centered around being a princess for God. She spends lot of time on "revelations" and very little on Scripture.
She also writes "love letters" that God supposedly gave to her and has a couple of books devoted to them. One of her several books is titled "How To Build A better You." How Joel Osteenish. How deceitful. God has no interest in building us into "a better you". It's building us into Christ. (Romans 8:29, Philippians 3:21) There is no where in Scripture God even implies he wants us to be better people or to have self esteem, self confidence, to love ourselves, feel good about ourselves. In fact, it's the exact opposite. But this is the kind of weak, worldly, false doctrine we're being fed.
Sheri Rose talks about her past as being a girl over weight and plain looking at best and going on to be Miss USA. After winning, photos of her popped up as an over weight ugly duckling and this traumatized her. Apparently, this spurned her on for a later ministry to help women feel good about themselves.
Sin affects us all. Not a single human being is not deeply scarred by sin whether it's our own or was thrust on us. Not a single one of us hasn't faced humiliation, mortification, trauma, struggles, depression, etc.What part of Sheri Rose Shepherd makes her a warrior princess? Is it her taking a stand against sin in her life and cutting it off to become holy? (Colossians 3:5, Galatians 5:17, 1 Cor 9:25, Romans 8:13) Or is it that she battled blows to her self confidence and self esteem and thinks this makes her a warrior princess?
While we flock to teachers that tell us what our itching ears want to hear, there are literally millions of Christians being persecuted all over the world daily, being put to death, tortured, imprisoned, maimed, raped, starved and families murdered for the Gospel. They suffer in ways we couldn't begin to imagine, but Sheri was traumatized over an old photo popping up? In that alone do we see Sheri's main focus. It's on herself and she wants us doing the same.
Those who have suffered didn't, nor do they, worry about their self esteem. Their focus is on God alone and esteeming Him, holding Christ up even in persecution. They don't worry about their weight or how they feel about themselves. They worry over whether or not they are exalting and glorifying God in the worst trials. They rejoice in their suffering. It is the hallmark and seal of God's hand on them.
Only in America, folks do we find this weak, worldly, disturbing teachings for profit. We need the refining fire of persecution to reach our doorsteps here in the West. Compared to Christians in other nations, we, in the west, are spoiled, self centered, shallow, ignorant, cows of Bashan (Amos 4:1-2) and Sheri Rose Shepherd helps cultivate it.
Does this look like the face of someone whose now going to be traumatized because her self esteem hasn't been helped by Beth Moore and Sheri Shepherd, Priscilla Shirer, Kay Arthur and others? Do you think these Christians even know who theses women are? This girl is far more beautiful than Sheri Rose could ever be. These Christians know what it means to deny themselves, take up their cross and follow him. (Mark 8:34) These teachers wouldn't dare show their faces in countries like these. It wouldn't take long before their self centered message would be shown for what it is.
In light of reality, these teachers and their message just seem silly and disgusting. What Sheri teaches is not the Christianity of the Bible. One only needs to read their Bible to know that. What she teaches is vanity, sin and of the world.
Can you look at these pictures and say you've suffered far more? I know I can't. What if this happened to Sheri? How fast would she desert Christ? Fat pics rocked her world pretty hard. If being overweight and an ugly duckling is the worst that's ever happened to Sheri Rose Shepherd or any of us, we all need a serious reality check.
This is an Indonesian Christian woman beheaded for her faith. This Christian woman is a warrior princess because she loved not her life even unto death. While Sheri teaches women how to cling to it, love it and make it prettier and skinnier.
Sheri Rose Shepherd is NOT a warrior princess. Most of these Christians don't even own Bibles. They smuggle them over the borders risking their lives or copy them in long hand so they can pass them on. Some even spend weeks memorizing word for word entire books so they can return home where Bibles are illegal and write them down for other believers.
We don't even read our Bibles. Instead we buy stupid workbooks from false teachers like Sheri Rose Shepherd, fill in the missing word like 4th graders and think we've got a nice handle on this whole Christian thing. How repulsive. This woman in the pic knew enough to understand what it means to lose her life to find it. She counted the cost and followed anyway. We in the west don't count anything unless is directly benefits us and makes us "feel good". We lose a job, house or car and we're angry at God. Did it ever occur to Sheri that she could lose her life?
These types of persecutions are no anomaly. This happens every single day while Sheri Rose Shepherd and other teachers get on a stage in their pretty designer dresses, shoes and nifty little workbooks they wrote and sell to teach us how to love ourselves, diet, feel pretty, have self confidence and cling to some sort of idea of self worth that's not even Biblical. While I write this all I can think of is, "How dare we? How dare these teachers?"
Sheri's entire ministry is based on a feel good message with a heavily watered down Gospel much like Beth Moore with very little mention of sin or repentance and a lot focused on "Self". She has no clue about expository teaching, exegesis or even a basic grasp of hermeneutics. She's just a talented motivational speaker, another proponent of pop-psychology, worldly philosophies and man-centered theology so prevalent in our society and churches. What part of these teachings and us flocking to them constitutes "Seek first the kingdom of God"? (Matt 6:33) What part teaches denying ourselves, taking up our crosses and following? (Mark 8:34) Or throwing off all that hinders and running that race with our eyes fixed on Jesus?
The theme centers around sins us girls are loaded down with that Paul warned about (2 Timothy 3:6) and instead of teaching us about cutting sin off and walking that narrow road, so we become more like Christ, they worm their way into our homes and lives and prey on us for a few bucks. It's all about "self", becoming more like Sheri Rose Shepherd and more like the world. Everything our American society cultivates anyway.
God's main concern for us is not whether or not we feel good about ourselves. It's not our self esteem or confidence. It's molding us into the image of Christ and all our suffering, whether we were 10 or 50, is used for that purpose. Christ learned obedience through suffering and He was the Son (Hebrews 5:8) so how much more will we?
For someone like me, and millions of others, who've come out of bad families, destructive lifestyles, false religions, depression, etc., this all seems good in the beginning. What human being doesn't want to focus all their attention on themselves and make themselves idols? It's already ingrained in us in the sin nature. This is why Shepherd and all those like her are so successful. They appeal to the sin nature. What makes Sheri's messages different from Dr. Phil and Oprah besides the Christian lingo she uses?
Here's an example taken from her website
His Princess Love LetterBeautifulMy Beautiful Girl
I know you don’t see yourself the way I do because you compare yourself to beauty idols that will soon be forgotten. If you could see how beautiful you are in My eyes, then you would see that your eternal beauty is a breath of heaven! When I look at you, I see a treasure ready to be discovered, a princess ready to shine. I have given you the kind of beauty that is everlasting. I lined your lips to speak words of life; I have given you beautiful hands to reach out to your hurting friends. The beauty I created you to be is a reflection of Me. The beauty you possess will leave eternal beauty marks on the hearts of all who were loved by you.
The "Beauty" is the image of Christ and that doesn't come without suffering and obedience. Only Christ has life and she doesn't use much Scripture to feed her followers. What she does use is twisted, distorted and taken way out of context to force it to line up with her silly ideas. All the while she's betting that the women who follow her never read their Bibles, won't even look those Scriptures up and compare what she teaches to Scripture. Her bet is valid though. They don't look them up and read surrounding text let alone study their Bibles.
What of these "love letters"? Where are these in Scripture? I can write a love letter to myself and others too and sign it "God". That doesn't mean it's from Him especially when they go against Scripture. That would just make me weird, possibly a little psychotic, but definitely Gnostic. Are we to just trust Sheri and not God? Are we to just throw out Scripture altogether and follow her love letters? Obviously she has more authority on Scripture than God.
His Princess Prayer over you
A Prayer for IdentityThe Lord’s greatest Treasure! I pray that you will know how highly your Father thinks of you. May you feel His love and acceptance in everything. I pray that you will treat yourself as an irreplaceable jewel, because that is how He sees you. May you not settle for anything less than you’re worth, and may you see yourself the way that God sees you: perfect in His eyes. I pray that you will never allow anyone to tell you who you are except for your heavenly Father, who knows the real you. May you shine for Him! In Jesus’ name, Amen. (emphasis in bold is mine)
Frankly, feeling good about me and sorrow over my sin severely clashes. I know my sin and it's ever before me. My sins reminds me how much I need Christ. I have no confidence in my flesh and know there is nothing good in me or any other Christian, but Christ. Our worth is dependent on Him alone. We can do nothing apart from Him. We can't even control waking up in the morning or how many hairs we'll lose when we brush. If we're to treat ourselves as we're worth and in light of Scripture wouldn't that make me like Satan, elevating myself in Christ since the only worth I have is Christ in me? That's exactly what she's telling women to do.
Furthermore, why does He see us "perfect in His eyes"? Could it have something to do with sin that made us filthy and vile before God, being condemned and going to hell except for Christ's perfectness and righteousness? Or is it because God thinks we're great just the way we are and He wants us to feel good about ourselves because we're His little princesses? Which is it Sheri?
Honestly, all this does is make me want to sing Christina Aguilera's "I Am Beautiful" while waving a lighter in the air. What is a prayer for identity? Identity in what? In who? For what? Where in Scripture is it ever mentioned or implied Christ intercedes for us to gain an "identity"? There's not a lot of focus on Christ and His finished work. There's no focus on sin, shining a spotlight on people to what they really are and their need for a Savior. Just being princesses like a bunch of Paris Hiltons with our little dogs running around and convincing ourselves this is what God wants. Just a lot more man-centered garbage so "in" these days.
This self centered doctrine absolutely repulses me because it does so much damage to our relationship with God and to knowing the real God....the God of the Bible. Not a god Sheri Rose Shepherd and those like her have conjured up to serve "Self". That's an idol.
But we like that kind of god who caters to us because he's not threatening and allows us to continue in the sin we love instead of cutting it off as Christ demanded (Matt 5:30). So much apostasy and blasphemy filling the churches. But we "feel" like we're saved and Sheri is teaching good doctrine. Feelings have nothing to do with it especially when Jeremiah 17:9 tells us the heart is deceitfully wicked. Do you want to put your trust in a heart that's deceitfully wicked?
It's good for Sheri Rose Shepherd though! She's making a lot of money off shallowness and encouraging shallowness. She's getting her ego stroked by ignorant, flocking professing Christians and mending her own hurt pride and inferiority complex through this false teaching. I got news for you Sheri, you're no warrior princess. You're not even Biblical. You're just another fake, worldly, false teacher. For the rest of us truly believing females...shake them off, turn away and follow Christ.
As for Sheri and others like her, they should heed Scripture and quake in their designer heels the next time they get on a stage to teach..."Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more severely than others." James 3:1
