The day had been hard on me for reasons that I am not aware of myself. All I know is I kept asking myself why I was doing what I was doing. Why was I going to two Bible Studies in a week three times a week? Why was I hanging out with this person at this very day? What was the point of whatever I was doing that day? These questions just kept nagging me, and I started to feel restless. Some days you come to the realization that you are not who you think you are, and you beg God yet again not to never give up on you…

“But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave- just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:25-28

Why do most of us have an urge to be “great”, whatever that means? Why do we strive at “leaving a mark” on this earth? Why are we driven with a spirit of performance?

In the Kingdom of Heaven, whoever desires to be great must be a servant the Bible says. 

But how many of us are striving to be great servants? Not a lot of people that I know of, I promise you that. And I am not in that category yet either, and it sickens me. I was talking to my mum few days ago, and we were talking about career stuff, and I remember saying something like, “I would want to do that because that position has power”. Lord, have mercy! After I said those words, I wanted to take them back so desperately. I felt shame. Am I not the person who believe that God is enough? But why did my mouth say such a thing? In that moment, I was conscious of this sense of wanting to be something or somebody that’s in most of us. We may not admit it to our “Christian” friends, but truth be told, most of us, want to be somebodies.

But isn’t the Cross enough? Doesn’t the Cross suppose to be enough?

Why do we live as if God needed and wanted *worldly* somebodies? Isn’t the whole point of the gospel God pursuing worldly nobodies to make them into Godly somebodies?

Even the Son of Man who deserved to show everyone how He was truly Somebody to be revered, to be praised, to be worshipped forevermore, humbled Himself, and made Himself a Nobody so that His Father could lift Him up at the proper time.

“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted  Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:5-10

Why do you do the things you do?

To live is Christ 

Today I met a guy who blew me away. Get this, he quit his job to read the Bible. Not because he wanted to do something for God, but because He just wanted to know his Father’s heart. His friend told us this while he introduced us to him, and shyly he said, “the Bible is a big book”.

I asked myself, how many days do I live like everything revolves around Christ? My waking up, my eating, my talking, am I truly doing everything for the glory of Christ? My posting on Facebook, am I doing it for Christ?

Even a good, innocent thing can be an abomination to the Lord if the heart behind it is not right with God.

It doesn’t matter how good me and you are, it doesn’t matter how many people may be amazed at what we do, if the heart of what we are doing is not to glorify God, God is not pleased. Preaching the gospel is not enough. Paul said that “some preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill: the former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely…” Philippians 1:15-16 I don’t want to only preach the gospel, I want to preach the gospel out of a heart that revere my God, out of a heart that solely want to glorify His majesty and goodness. I don’t want to preach the gospel to show off how great God has gifted me.

Your gift may be your downfall depending on how you use it.

Your gift may bring you some type of recognition or fame, and suddenly unconsciously you may start to believe that you are something outside of God. Please read carefully the warning God gives the Israelites as He was about to lead them in the land of promise. 

“Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you today, lest— when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them; and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold are multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied; when your heart is lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty land where there was no water; who brought water for you out of the flinty rock; who fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might test you, to do you good in the end— then you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.’ “And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.” Deuteronomy 8:11-18 

Can we all agree that there is a reason why John says in chapter 3 verse 30, “He must increase, but I must increase”. You can not want to increase, and have a place for God in your life to increase at the same time. That simply won’t work. Either I will “choose” to surrender to Him so that He can decrease me in my life or I will “make” myself increase in my futile performance, and He will surely start to decrease in my life.

The other night, I was at the Hillsong nights concert, and I was praying through stuff, and it’s like I heard the Spirit of God whisper to me, “The tough times that you resent are there to make you decrease in your life. To ride you of yourself. To make you trust Me more than you trust yourself.” I became speechless.

Isn’t it true? Can we selfish humans beings find ways to decrease ourselves? Most of the times doesn’t God bring tough times in our lives so that we can decrease and see how Great and Powerful He is?

Isn’t it through nudges that He prompts us to quit our job if we have to? His nudges prompt us to leave a relationship behind us no matter how hard it will be; His nudges prompt us to forgive that person one. more. time. His nudges keep prompting us to keep walking in the fire and just. trust. that. He. is. with. us. Lightning will not come to “affirm” that this is His will for you, but faith will keep you steady and joyful.

I am so thankful to be around people who inspire me to live boldly for Christ. People who live their lives in a way that reminds me to get over myself and just obey and follow Christ.

“But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of knowing Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith- that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and may share His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” Philippians 3:7-11

Doesn’t the guy who quit his job just to read his Bible really get it?

When are we all Christian going to start to live like everything is rubbish compared to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ? By no means am I saying that those who have jobs should quit them, and I am not saying that I will quit school, but what I am trying to ask is am I living in a way that testifies that I count everything as loss compared to Him? Do I cling to being seen as a talented/gifted person more than I cling to being obedient to the One who died for me? Do I spend more time performing and doing things that won’t matter eternally than spending my time seeking more and more the One I will surely go back to eternally ?

To live is Christ. And everything else is rubbish. Lord, please, helps us live with this perspective in mind. Our days are short and the days are evil. Thank You for Your love and unending discipline. In Jesus’ name, help us live like we truly believe that You are enough Father God. Please! In Jesus’ name, I pray and I believe, Amen.