Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves ...


Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other. -Romans 12:3-5 NLT

This lifelong journey of self image seems to have two ditches - self-deprecation and pride. One ditch causes us to deny every gift that God has bestowed on us. The other does not even realize that the gifts we have are God given. A healthy self image seems to lie, somewhere in between these two ditches, on a road called humility. This pathway calls us to walk in full knowledge of our weaknesses yet with full confidence in God's gifts and calling in our lives.

We do not travel this humble road alone. We are called to walk it with others. In truth no one can be humble by themselves because, like a great symphony, one instrument often must defer to another. Sometimes our gifts call us to lead and other times they call us to follow. Paul likens these gifts of grace to parts of the body - the ear and the eye must work together to watch a movie. So also we must walk together realizing that "we all belong to each other".

Help us to be humble Lord. Open our hearts that we might know when we are to lead and when we are to follow.


2 comments:

  1. This is so true.. I have to laugh at a memory of my son, Myk and his friend Kenneth when they were in High. When I would discuss humility they would would break out into song.."Ohhhhhh, it's hard to be humble when you're perfect in every way...." I think sometime we're prone to feel this way about ourselves. God in his mercy and graciouness, has a way of showing us who we really are...That middle ground is was we all strive for.

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    1. I sometimes wonder Wanda, if it is possible to be humble when we are young. :)

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