There's a fairly widespread phenomenon that affects people in an expansive range of occupations. It's called Imposter's Syndrome and it means you don't feel worthy of the accomplishments you've made or the opportunities you've enjoyed. The classic example is an Oscar-winning actor waiting for someone to realize they can't act.
It directly relates to the latest word I've discovered in John Koenig's The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows:
the giltwrights - n. `the imaginary committee of elders that keeps a running log of all your mistakes, steadily building their case that you're secretly a fraud, a coward, a doofus - who would've revoked your good fortune years ago had they not been hampered by their own bitter squabblings over proper grammar and spelling. [Old English gilt, awareness of wrongdoing + wrought, shaped with hammers.]
For most of us, there's no need to create an imaginary group to keep that log. We do a fine job of compiling a list of our faults all on our own.
That's bad enough. The trouble with this is compounded when we assign the role of giltwright to Yahweh...the very being who forgives us for all those things we are putting on our lists.
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Truth is...If we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 1 John 1:9 (NLT)
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