Less of Me, More of Him

2/24/2021

Written By: Margie Davis

In my life I have taken it as a great compliment when someone calls me “Independent”, “Self Reliant,” “Hard Working,” “Capable” and other such labels. It makes me feel that I can do things by myself, and therefore I won’t be dependent on or a burden to anyone else. It also gives me a sense of approval. And I hate to admit how much I crave that.

My sense of SELF APPROVAL seems to be so tied into what I’m capable of! Where do those feelings come from? Who knows? Childhood? Learned behavior? Rejection? Honestly, I’m not sure it matters where it comes from. It is false thinking. Self-reliance isn’t what Jesus taught and “look at me and my performance” is DEFINITELY not!

Why then, do I check for approval so much? Why do I feel that if I can’t perform well as a wife, friend, mom, grandma, daughter, sister, servant and Christian then I will be rejected on some level?

I think maybe I’m just too “me” for my own eternal good. But, I have a Savior who won’t leave me in a “bad for me” place. So I feel restless. He’s teaching me. He’s refining me. He’s making me reliant on Him. The lessons are difficult. I want to go hard every single day and when He slows me down to learn or just to rest, I get fidgety thinking that I will be “caught” not performing. But I’m slowly getting it. He wants me to be like HIM, not like ME.

Matthew 10:39 says “Whoever finds his life will lose it and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” I know that scripture well, but honestly, the question in every single spiritual lesson that Jesus tries to teach us isn’t really do I KNOW and UNDERSTAND it, but rather do I ACCEPT and LIVE it.

Everything in our culture tells us to live for us. If something feels “natural” to us, then by all means, we should indulge that feeling. No matter that it goes directly against what Jesus taught and Who He is. And we are spiraling farther and farther away from TRUTH. We know that Jesus wouldn’t lie, steal, gossip, fornicate, change His gender, abort a baby, etc. and yet, because we believe He wants us to be like US and not like HIM, I’m afraid we are being easily lured away from everything that we know is really true and swept up into common culture. And we aren’t called to be common.

I don’t want to give Satan too much press here, but he knows what you’re tempted toward. And he will constantly throw doubt into your mind about right and wrong. He makes us believe that it’s a fine line between the two and it is not. He succeeded with Adam and Eve and he tried super hard to pull that on Jesus, but of course, it didn’t work. Jesus was armed and ready with the very words of His father.

Friends, Jesus sees you. He KNOWS you! Maybe your hang up isn’t the same as mine. But He absolutely knows what the “thing” is that keeps you more YOU-focused than HIM-focused. When you’re in a valley in life, or if you’re disappointed in yourself, or you aren’t seeing the outcome you long for, take a step back and ask yourself what Jesus is trying to teach you about HIM. Not about yourself. We usually think He’s teaching us about ourselves; about where we are failing. He is not refining us into a better version of ourselves, He’s refining us into Him. It’s the place where pride falls away and humility takes its rightful place in our hearts.

Are we brave enough to start every morning with a prayer to be more like Him and less like me? Be gentle and patient with us Lord as we learn to be like You.