tandc90 wrote:
We Americans have a lot of pressure on us to be "successful" in every way possible and weakness is looked down upon.

I was wondering if those of you in other countries have noticed if this pressure to be happy all the time is part of your society also or just a pente thing?
From what I can see of American culture I think there is too much emphasis on being successful and winning. I remember going to a private screening of a short film of an automobile rally through the Himalayas put on by one of the participants, a "successful" American lady. The scenery was stunning, the trip was life changing but she was dissapointed that she only came second and didnt win. She said "that having come all that way and not winning was an unacceptable outcome." I suddenly felt sorry for her, here I was living on $230 a week and she was a millionaire, but I enjoyed just watching the film more than she enjoyed the whole rally.

Because it is impossible to sustaing a winning streak for ever it has lead to the watering down of what success is. Especially in the eighties and nineties people were being congratulated for mediocraty as if it was a great thing. Being in the education sector I have noticed it especially and there is a backlash by many teachers saying things like "I am not giving out rewards for half assed efforts or for them just doing what they were supposed to do".

As far as it being an American or Pente thing, what's the difference? Most Pente churches just copy thier culture from America. Though I don't see it as much here in the churches here as I have seen on documnetaries on American Pentecostalism.