The world is a place where pride abounds. Those who do not lift themselves up are ignored by the masses. There once was a time when people strived to be “discovered” and hoped they would be seen as stars amongst the teeming masses. Today, anyone with access to a smartphone has access to the world. These devices are as far removed from phones as the pocket calculator once was from the supercomputer. Every smartphone is a powerful computing device that revivals my first computer, the Commodore 64. Indeed, the modern phone can do everything from taking photos and recording movies to controlling other smart devices in our homes. People use them to show themselves to the world. When the Apostle Paul said to the Corinthians, “We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise,” he could have been talking about society today (2 Corinthians 10:12 NIV).

As Christians, we ought to examine ourselves. Our way of living and how we carry ourselves. However, it’s foolish, as Paul says, to commend ourselves by comparing ourselves to ourselves. I’ve noticed I run into problems when I do two things.

  1. Compare me to others.
  2. Compare me to me.

There are times when I don’t feel like I’m growing in Christ. I look around, and I don’t see much, if any, good fruit in my life. When we look at anything, especially ourselves, we have to do it with the eyes of the Holy Spirit. Before we were in Christ, we looked at everything from a worldly perspective, even Jesus. Now that we are in Christ, if we don’t use the eyes of the Spirit to see, then we’re not seeing the truth.

If we look to ourselves without the lens of the Spirit, we may see nothing but the sin in our lives. Even worse, we might look in the mirror and see a righteous person. When God looks at us, He sees us as righteous only because we’re covered in the blood of Jesus. Our righteousness, at best, without the blood of Jesus, is as filthy rags before God. Therefore, when we look in the mirror, we want to see Christ in ourselves. I can think of no better way to start the day than by seeing Jesus in the mirror.

When we compare ourselves to others, we run into many dangers. Self-righteous thought and behavior are nourished and grow by comparing ourselves with others. Again, it’s when we see through the Spirit that we can see with love.

We can, and should, look at who we used to be, even yesterday, and see who we are or are not, in the Lord. This is one way to see how far God has brought us. Our past self isn’t the self we are today. When we look at the old person and see things we don’t like, we can change. Any positive change in us had been done by God. If we pray and ask it to be done. Hallelujah! If we strive to not do things in the old ways but to do them in God’s way, and succeed, hallelujah! We couldn’t have done it without God’s grace.

However, as soon as we think, “I did it,” and do not acknowledge it was God who did it, then we have a problem.

Dare I say, it’s best to focus on God and trust that He will complete the good work that He started in you. Then, He will raise you up at the appointed time. I believe great humility is birthed by living in such a way. This doesn’t mean we ignore who we are or how we live. As we go through each day, in tune to the Lord, we ask Him to show us how He wants us to change. We read the Bible prayerfully and faithfully with the expectation that the Holy Spirit will lead us and guide us into God’s truth. Then, when you see how God has brought you from such a humble position, you can loudly and proudly boast, “He did it!”

Choose LIFE today.

Live by trusting that God will complete the work He started in you. (Philippians 1:6)
Intreat (Ask) the Lord to show you anything that needs to be changed in you. (Psalm 139:23-24)
Follow Christ and do what He says. (Matthew 9:9)
Exalt the Lord for what He has done. (2 Corinthians 10:17)

Do you know God? God knows you, and He loves you. He sees you as significant because you are. No one is insignificant to Him. He’s with you today, right now, and He wants you to know Him. Jesus died for your sins and mine so we could be free of guilt, be freed from death, and live eternally with Him. Eternal salvation is just a prayer away.

Pray this prayer with me to accept the gift of salvation today:

Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. Amen.

If you prayed that prayer, then congratulations! You are on the first step of a brand new life. Allow me to be the first to welcome you to my family, the family of God. There are abundant resources available online for new Christians. You can visit here for more information on what to do next. You can also leave me a comment, and I’ll do my best to help you on the next step of this incredible journey.

Advertisement