The Most Dangerous Game: Conceit

The Most Dangerous Game: Conceit

     There is a famous story by Richard Connell, published back in 1924. It's about a hunter who fills an island with prey to hunt...only his quarry isn't animals. It's humans. Killing other people, Connell's story says, is the most dangerous game.

    But is it really? Sure, Connell’s most dangerous game can destroy our physical bodies, but there are even more dangerous games that can destroy our souls and our relationship with Jesus.

     The five I’ll focus on in this devotional series are: comparison, conceit, complacency, compromise, and conformity.

Day 2: Conceit

     Conceit, or pride, is said to be the original sin. And, indeed, if we look back in the Bible, it was pride that drove Lucifer to try and overthrow God. And, unfortunately, pride is just as rampant today as it was in Satan’s heart when he rebelled.

     So, if pride was dangerous enough to get someone thrown out of Heaven, it’s definitely time to evaluate our lives and see how we can overcome it!

     When you start playing this dangerous game, you start to think that you know better than God.

     Pride is subtle. It is the root of so many things, and yet, we don’t recognize it. In fact, pride has also been called the root of all sins. We touched on it a little bit yesterday in our lesson about comparison. When we compare ourselves to other people and feel that we are better than them, that’s a prime example of conceit/pride. 

     One dangerous facet of pride is that we start to think that we know better than God. When we pray, we always tell God what we think He should do. When our prayers go unanswered, we get mad at God and wonder why He didn’t cave to our whims: pride. When we disregard parts of the Bible that are just a little too hard for us to digest and label them as myths or ways society has changed, that’s pride. We can’t pick and choose what is relevant about God, or else we’re merely fashioning a god in the image of ourselves. In our pride, we are tearing God down and saying that we know better than His Holy Word. Which brings me to my next point: 

     When you start playing this dangerous game, you start fashioning yourself as God.

     When you think you know better than God, you are fashioning yourself to be God. You get to decide which parts of the Bible you will live by. You want to listen to yourself and don’t want to acknowledge that someone could be greater than you. Pride is scared of relinquishing power to God, to admitting that there is a God who knows better than you and who deserves to be listened to. When we are filled with pride, we start to chafe at the fact that we are not in charge. We don’t like listening to God, we don’t like obeying God, or being judged by God. It’s much easier to toss God out of the picture and act as if there is no God so that we can be in charge of our own world. 

     Satan wanted to be God. Today, each one of us does, too. It’s only by the grace of God that we are able to conquer this. To defeat pride, we must fall on our knees—a position that pridefulness resents—and submit ourselves wholly to God and recognize that God is God, and we are not.

     When you start playing this dangerous game, growth is nearly impossible. 

     Pride causes self-righteousness. Pride causes selfishness. And, of course, pride comes before the fall (Proverbs 16:18). 

     When we are prideful, we often resent when people try and help us to grow. There’s almost nothing more prideful than spitting out the verse: “get the plank out of your own eye before you get the speck of dust out of mine” (Matthew 7:5). See, the funny thing is, when most people say this verse, they are using it to justify their actions and shut up their critics. Usually, they use it as justification to continue on in doing what they want to do, without validating or considering someone else’s opinions. In their own pride, they use that verse as a crutch to not grow. 

     But that isn’t what Jesus is advocating at all! 

     Jesus’s actual words were to take the plank out of your own eye first—so that then you can help your brother to get the speck out of his. Jesus wasn’t using it to “shut up his critics.” He was using this verse as a launching pad for growth, but pride had twisted what was a call for humility and togetherness into a verse of justification for evil. 

     See, when people approach us with comments and want a heart-to-heart discussion with us, then we shouldn’t let pride get in the way of growth. None of us are perfect, but pride doesn’t want to admit that. Pride acts in self-preservation, and if we admit that we are wrong, then we have to also be humble. But pride doesn’t want that. 

     We also can bite back at people when we are too prideful. Because being in the wrong wounds our pride, we want to wound them instead. So we snap at them, tell them what they’re doing wrong, get angry...all of these are desperate acts of self-preservation from pride. And that makes people wary about approaching us in the future, which means that our flaws can go unchecked: and pride loves this. 

     Remember this example from the Bible: at the Last Supper, Jesus tells the disciples that they’ll all fall away from Him. Peter, blinded by his pride, declares that even if everyone else falls away (look at that bit of comparison!), he never will (and there’s our conceit!).

     And we all know how the story goes. Before the rooster crows, Peter has denied God. His pride went right before a huge fall. 

     His pride made him blind to Jesus’s teachings. But, after he was knocked down a few pegs, Peter became humbled. And once he was humbled, he was redeemed—and went on to be a fierce missionary for Christ, doing things he never thought possible (like ministering to the Gentiles!). 

     God used Peter’s humility to escort him into deep growth, and He can do the same for us.

     How to win this dangerous game: replace conceit with conscious humility.

Bible verses:

(Ezekiel 28:11-19)

(Proverbs 16:18)

(Matthew 7:5)

(Matthew 26:31-35)

(Matthew 26:69-75)

(Isaiah 2:12)

(James 4:4-10)

(Philippians 2:3)

(Proverbs 8:13)

The Most Dangerous Game: Comparison

The Most Dangerous Game: Comparison
     There is a famous story by Richard Connell, published back in 1924. It's about a hunter who fills an island with prey to hunt...only his quarry isn't animals. It's humans. Killing other people, Connell's story says, is the most dangerous game.
    But is it really? Sure, Connell’s most dangerous game can destroy our physical bodies, but there are even more dangerous games that can destroy our souls and our relationship with Jesus.
     The five I’ll focus on in this devotional series are: comparison, conceit, complacency, compromise, and conformity.

Day 1: Comparison
     All my life, I’ve struggled with the dangerous game of comparison. For me, it mostly manifests itself in that I never think I’m good enough: look at what so-and-so can do, or how talented they are. They’re much better than me. They’re smarter than me. They’re prettier than me. They’re more unique than me. I’m just a fraud. There’s also the comparison that looks at others and thinks: I’m so much better than them. I’m a better Christian than them. I’m smarter than them. I’m prettier than them. I’m so unique.
     Neither of these is a good attitude to have, and neither is “preferable” to the other. Always believing everyone is better than you is no less destructive than always believing you’re better than everyone else. Why?
     Because when you play this dangerous game, you start to devalue the worth of God’s creation. 
     I once heard a wonderful example of comparison, though where I heard it escapes me now. But the gist of it was this: when we use comparisons, we are putting people either up on a pedestal above us, or shoving them on a pedestal below us. We allot them either too much power and value (thinking they’re better than us), or we allot them too little power and value (think we’re better than them). It is a decision to think and behave as if they are worth more (or less) as a human being than we are. But how wrong we are to have this attitude!
     We do not get to decide our worth or anyone else’s. God gave each person a worth from the moment He created them. Psalm 139:13 tells us that God has knitted us together, and therefore, we have an intrinsic worth that cannot change. God tells us that we are worth more to the sparrows to Him (Matthew 10:29-31), so why should we not believe Him?
     A person’s intelligence, a person’s actions, a person’s behavior or clothes or station or possessions—none of this determines his or her worth. When we fall into the trap of comparison, we’re saying that it does. We’re saying that a person is only worth as much as they can accomplish in life, in as smart as they are, or by the brand of clothes they wear.
     So we can win this dangerous game by telling ourselves: our worth is not determined by anything but God, and we are all equal in His eyes.
     When you start to play this dangerous game, you also lose your joy.
     I’ll be honest: there is nothing more miserable than walking around, wondering why everyone else on earth is better than you. Why they have a better house than you, why they have a significant other when you don’t, why they have kids or a car or...etc. etc. etc.
     It doesn’t have to be material possessions, either. Sometimes, I can start to compare the faith of others to my own. “Wow, they have such faith. They’re a much better person than I am...I bet God loves them more. I bet they please God more. They’re so talented, so they can do way more to further the Kingdom of God. I’m never going to do anything worthwhile.”
     These are joy-sucking thoughts. Comparison is so dangerous because it is a gateway to so many other sins: pride, jealousy, wrath. It can even lead to depression if we let our negative headspace spiral far enough. When we start to focus on everything that we don’t have, or everything that someone else does better, then we lose focus on what we can do.
     Paul gives a wonderful example of this in 1 Corinthians 12:15-26. In this oft-quoted section, we see Paul tell the church that not one part of the body is more useful than another part. We can’t say the hand is better than an eye, or a foot, or a nose. They all have unique parts, and they are all made to do what they were intended to do. So Gina who can sing isn’t any better than Bob who can teach, and Judy who is a fierce prayer warrior isn’t any better than Tom who serves others with such joy. We can’t rank these gifts. We can’t compare our gifts to them. Instead, we must be thankful that God has given us each our gift—and, yes, He has given you one, too. You just have to stop listening to the joy-sucking deceiver of comparison and start praying for God to open your eyes to what your gift is.
     Trust me—actually, trust Him when He says that it is beautiful, it is wonderful, and He is waiting to reveal it to you. You just need to shake off the devil of comparison to be able to see your worth, understand your value and Spiritual gifts, and embrace contentment with who God made you and what God gave you.
     How to win this dangerous game: replace comparison with contentment.

Bible verses:
(Psalm 139:13)
(Matthew 10:29-31)
(1 Corinthians 12:15-26)
(Philippians 4:11-13)
(Proverbs 14:30)

Interview: Kayla Green (The Unicorn Writer)

Kayla Green, aka The Unicorn Writer!

     Today I have the pleasure of interviewing one of the sweetest people I know: Kayla Green, who goes by The Unicorn Writer! She is a full-time English teacher in North Carolina and has recently released a book of poetry, Metamorphosis. It's a wonderful look into the story of how faith can help us through a tumultuous period of depression and anxiety in our life. I got to sit down with Kayla (virtually, of course!) and talk a little bit about herself and her writings. 

Q: How long have you been writing?

A: I have been writing and creating stories since I was little. When I was about 8 or so, I fashioned together my first “book” called “The Lonely Guinea Pig” complete with illustrations. I was so proud of it!
In middle school, I began writing poetry and dabbling in fantasy writing. I entered my first and second writing contests in middle school. I did not win the poetry contest, but won first place in the short story contest. My story was about two middle schoolers who opened Pandora’s Box and had to work together to save their town and reseal the box. I wish I still had a copy of the story. . .
(So do I! That sounds amazing!)
In high school, I focused more on nonfiction writing as I participated in Journalism Newspaper all four years. I served as the editor my senior year, and it was one of my favorite experiences. In undergraduate school, I wrote for fun on occasion, but I really started to set aside time for writing when I turned 26. I believe that God gave me a gift, and I decided to share my gift of writing with others. Shortly after this epiphany is when I wrote my first novel The Goodness of Unicorns.
The Goodness of Unicorns is a fantasy novel that follows the point of view of young Rowan Tritonia. Rowan struggles with adjusting to high school and coping with the fact that she is a magicless witch -- something unheard of in the world of Wisteria. Rowan has been told all her life that she is not good enough by her father, and she struggles to accept herself and find acceptance in a world she desperately wants to belong. Her negative thoughts make her easy prey for a demon who begins to plague her. As darkness attempts to consume Rowan, it also threatens the world at large. Can Rowan discover the magic within her and help light prevail over darkness?
(This sounds fantastic! I can't wait to read it!)

Q: What inspires your poems? Do you find the Bible verses first, or does God reveal the perfect verses to you after you’ve written them?

A: The idea for Metamorphosis was written after God placed Isaiah 40:31 in my heart. I sat down and wrote the poem “Promises.” In that moment, a fire was ignited in my heart, and God urged me to create a collection of poems to share with others. Shortly after I wrote the poem “Metamorphosis,” the other poems followed suit. There are two poems that I had written beforehand, but felt like they were needed to complete my story: “Depression” and “Purpose.”

Q: How long does it usually take to write a poem? How many drafts do you usually do?

A: I have written a poem in mere minutes, but have also worked up to a week on a single poem. It depends on the purpose of the poem, my level of inspiration, and how it sounds when I read it aloud to myself. Some of my poems are the original version, while others have gone through many stages to arrive at its final form.

Q: How long did it take you to write “Metamorphosis”?

A: This project was written in about four months.

Q: Would you want to share with us a little bit about your struggle/inspiration journey?

A: I have struggled with anxiety and depression most of my life. And there was a time in my life that I had great struggles in my faith, but all that I have experienced has in turn led me to grow closer to God. I have found solace in the arms of Jesus. I wanted to share my journey so that others who feel lost or broken know they can be found and made whole through God’s love.

Q: Do you have any advice for people who are going through a similar struggle to what you faced?

A: Depression and anxiety are very real, and they are nothing to be ashamed of. Despite the stigma that mental health has, it is okay to talk about. Take your concerns and worries to God through prayer. What I love about prayer is that even when you don’t have the right words, God hears your heart. God will always hear you. And God heard my prayers and led me to specialists to help me. That’s right, I have a therapist and a psychiatrist that I talk to. And that’s okay! It’s okay to have Jesus and a therapist too. My faith-based therapist prays for and with me and she helps me cope with life through a spiritual lens. I firmly believe God placed her in my life at the right time to help me. So, ask for help, pray, break the stigma, and pray more.

Q: Can you tell me a little about your faith journey? Were you raised in church, or how did you come to find Jesus?

A: I was raised in church and remember the moment I asked Jesus to forgive my sins and live in my heart at a vacation Bible school. I remember being baptized, and I actively sought out God’s word as a young child. However, I had a negative experience at one church following my parents’ divorce. That, along with the verbal abuse I suffered at the hands of my biological father, and my sister’s autoimmune disease made me question my faith. Yet, time and time again God proved that He had not abandoned us, and that He would never fail. I saw miracle after miracle performed in my life, and all my struggles and triumphs led me back to Him. I am now blessed with a loving church home, a real dad who loves me unconditionally, and my sister’s health has greatly improved.

Q: I’m so excited about your two new works-in-progress! First up: your short story collection about space! Can you tell us about it?

A: Absolutely! I am re-writing four fairy tales that relate in some way to the sun, moon, or stars. The four stories I am re-writing are: The Buried Moon, The Sister of the Sun, The Twins with the Golden Stars, and The Star Talers. My versions are: The Moon Goddess, The Sun’s Sister, The
Golden Stars, and Keeper of the Celestial Keys. The two former re-writes are more fantasy based, while the latter two have a science fiction twist.
Here is a quick blurb for The Moon Goddess: Ric, an elf, worries he is unworthy of receiving his Gift from the Moon Goddess. Yet, the events of the night show that the Moon Goddess finds him worthy of her love. But how can Ric accept that when he knows he has sinned? The Moon Goddess
is a story of self-acceptance and faith with a fantastical spin.
The Moon Goddess is the only one that has been drafted completely thus far, but I am excited for this collection and how it will unfold! I will post updates on my blog and social media.

Q: Second up: what can you tell us about “Rune and the One Truth”?

A: “Rune and the One Truth” is a prequel to a larger collection I am developing, “The One Truth Chronicles.” All her life, Rune has done as she was told, never questioning the gods of Vihishki. But, then Aivan, who claims to be the One Truth, speaks to her. Rune is told by many that Aivan is just a myth and that Vihishki is the way. Yet, Rune knows in her heart something is wrong with the village’s current way of life. Can Rune discover her divine properties and help both restore the Heaven Realm and bring salvation to her people?
I was inspired to write this book because I wanted to share my faith. I wanted to write a YA Christian fantasy that would allow readers a space to explore and discuss their faith. I hope to begin the first novel (second book) in the series after I finish my short story collection.

Q: Do you have any advice for other authors?

A: Listen to the story God writes on your heart. If you have a story, write it without worrying if it will be good or what others will think. Someone, somewhere needs to read the words only you can write, and God put them in your heart for a reason.

Q: What are some books that have changed your life or that you continue to re-read?

A: I love this question! “Criss Cross” by Lynne Rae Perkins taught me about life and relationships. “Matilda” by Roald Dahl taught me to always believe in myself. “Dealing with Dragons” by Patricia Wrede taught me to follow my dreams and stand up for myself. DWD also inspired me to write fantasy back in middle school.

Q: What do you enjoy doing in your free time?

A: When I am not reading or writing, I am watching TV with my husband (we really enjoy anime and shows like “The Witcher”), crocheting (I’m a novice and working on my first blanket), and spending time with my furbabies.

Q: What’s one unique fact or talent about you?

A: I have a twin sister. I have four dogs and a cat. On occasion, I paint. Oh! I collect sugar skulls and FurryBones. And I love mythical creatures, especially unicorns.

Q: The most important question of all: what’s your favorite color?

A: Pink.

~~~~~~~

I would like to send a huge thanks to Kayla for joining me today. I had so much fun with my first interview! She's such an authentic person and I hope that you all have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know her as much as I have. ♥

If you're looking to buy your own copy of Metamorphosis, follow this link. Here's my review of it: 

Kayla's poems are so relatable and really resounded with me. I felt so touched by reading them! They brought tears to my eyes. She is such a talented writer and you can read her emotions and sense her faith as you read through this beautiful collection.

Her poems show that, no matter how alone we feel in the midst of them, our struggles are universal and nothing that we can say or think will shock God or make Him turn away from us. He understands our troubles and promises that we don’t have a God who can’t empathize with us, but One who feels everything that we have been through (Hebrews 4:15) and will see us through all the valleys and mountains.

Thank you, Kayla, for sharing your poems and your heart with the world! We are all the more blessed for it.

Keep in touch with Kayla so you never miss what's happening next! She can be found at:

Author Website

Blog

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Define: Christian

(Picture model: Thank you to my beautiful friend, Montana, for letting me use her picture♥)

     I’m a writer. I love words. It’s what I do. And, if I’m ever in the midst of searching for the perfect word, I’ll get in Google and search for a similar word using their dictionary. All you have to do is type “define: word,” and you’ll get its exact meaning.
     And lately, I’ve been thinking about the definition of a certain word.
     Or, more specifically, what it means to be a Christian. How do we define: Christian?
     The most surface-level is a believer in Christ...but James 2:19 says that even the demons believe. I don’t know if anyone would say that demons are Christians. So we’ll take it a step further: we must be a follower of Christ. That would set us apart from the demons.
     So we believe and follow—that makes us Christians.
     But how do we follow?
     Psalms 119:133 lays it out like this: “Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.” In the Old Testament, God’s Word was the Law, but in the New Testament, His Word is the entire Bible. And, though I’m definitely not the end-all, be-all for the definition of being a Christian (that definitely belongs to God!), let me tell you what it means to me.

• Follow God’s instructions. 
• I mentioned above that believing in God is only one part of being a Christian. We must be willing to follow God’s instructions, which He’s laid out in the Bible. He’s made His desires and His heart very clear, and, as Christians, we should desire to follow Him. But here’s the thing: we will always fall short. Romans 3:23 assures us that, for better or for worse, everyone falls short of God’s perfection. We can never follow God’s instructions to the T. That’s the whole reason we’re Christians: because we admit that we need Jesus to be perfect in God’s eyes! But there’s one thing I want to point out: we are all sinners. Which means that none of us are perfect. Not you. Definitely not me. Not your preacher (isn’t that a shock?). No one, from Mother Teresa to a drug dealer down the street, is perfect enough to not need Jesus, to follow every instruction God has left behind for us. So, what then? What are we to do if we understand that we are not perfect?
  We can start by opening our minds. It offends our pride to admit that we could have things we need to work on, but it’s true. Everyone has things in their Christian life that they could do better. And we can’t let our pride get in the way of being corrected. When someone approaches us and tells us something that we don’t want to hear, that could be damaging our witness, pushing us farther away from God, or pushing others farther away from God because of the way we act, we should (to put it bluntly), shut up and listen! That doesn’t mean that you should take their advice. You should always consult with God and read his Bible as it is written, not how you feel it should be written and see if there’s any merit in what was said to you. Never be so prideful that you reject all correction and snap back: “judge not lest ye be judged.” Pride is the original sin. Pride is in all of us. Once again: pride is in you, pride is in me, pride is in your preacher and everyone from Mother Teresa to the drug dealer down the street. We can all follow Jesus better. It takes someone who is actively trying to be a follower of Jesus to recognize that fact.
• Have an active relationship with God. 
• Here’s what I would like for everyone to understand: being a Christian is not about escaping Hell. We shouldn’t judge our actions about what will or won’t “get us thrown in Hell.” That’s like looking at your spouse and saying to yourself, “How much can I hurt him/her without them actually divorcing me?” ...Um, hello! That’s not a relationship at all. If you’re only acting in self-preservation to get out of Hell, you’ve missed the sweetest part of being a Christian: being with God! How sweet a marriage can be if you aren’t looking to avoid divorce, but to cherish marriage. The same is true with Christianity. How sweet it is when we aren’t looking to judge our actions by how to avoid Hell, but when we’re looking to have a full relationship with God. When we pray. When we read the Bible. When we treat Him not as a parole officer or ball and chain, but as the Man with the keys to our deliverance. As the person who will set us free from the ball and chain of our sin. To believe that a relationship with God is so much more than just (maybe) attending church and (maybe) saying a prayer every once in a while. The Bible assures us that God already knows us—and the sweetness of Christianity is getting to know Him more and more with every breath. 
• Show love.
• I’ll confess: we live in a hotbed climate right now. Everything is an issue. There are lines drawn, anger, bitter, sides throwing stones at each other, and—
  Wait, what’s that?
  You say it’s not your side that’s being angry and nasty, but the other side?
  ...By doing that, you’re doing exactly what you say they’re doing. You’re throwing a stone, calling them unreasonable, saying they’re all hotheads, stupid idiots, etc.
  The truth is this: I’ve seen hate from each side of every debate you can think of. I’ve seen people called stupid, snowflakes, boomers, liberals, conservatives, all of these used as the harshest insults one can imagine. I’ve seen people sneer “aha! GOTCHA!” on virtual and real-life platforms. They talk about the other side of the argument in the most condescending attitude, as if they’re the reason for the world’s problems.
  No.
  Know what the reason for the world’s problems is?
  Sin.
  “But they’re sinners! They’re spreading a sinful, hateful agenda! They’re worse than me!”
  No.
  We’re all sinners.
  The only difference is that some people repent for their sins, and some people gleefully embrace them. The only difference is the conviction of the Holy Spirit. And let me tell you: I find it hard to believe that anyone ever converted while being screamed at, called a slew of names, or being mocked. If anything, that just makes them dig their heels in deeper, lower their heads, and yell even louder back. Hate everything even more.
  People, where is the love that Jesus showed?
  “Love” doesn’t mean you have to accept or support everything that people do. “Love” means that you don’t scream at someone what an idiot they are. “Love” means that your heart breaks for the sin of the world, that you weep for Jerusalem like Jesus did (Luke 19:41-44). If your heart breaks for someone, you aren’t going to call them names. You’re going to hug them. You’re going to weep for the sin, pray for them, and do your best to live a life that points towards Jesus in every way so that they want what you have. Your life is the only witness people see sometimes. If you look back in the Bible, do you see who Jesus condemned the most? The Christians of the times. He called them hypocrites (keep in mind, not idiots). He was angry that the people who should have known God’s law were perverting it the most. To the sinners, the ones that didn’t know any better, or the ones that had fallen away completely, He never called them names. He called them out, but He never called them names.
  Let’s read the story of the woman caught in adultery one more time today. John 8:1-11. Jesus gives those that want to stone the woman a dare: “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone at her.”
  One by one, the accusers walk away, because, as I said previously, we are all sinners.
  And Jesus?
  Jesus, who really could throne the stone? Who was perfect and had every right to condemn her, both by His own parameters set forth and because He’s the Son of God?
  “Neither do I [condemn you],” He says. “Go and sin no more.”
  This is such a beautiful picture of love that it makes me want to cry as I read it, as I type this. This is the kind of love Jesus showed people. He is a High Priest who knows all our temptations, all our struggles, and yet, remained blameless and pure (Hebrews 4:15). Love will be with people through their lowest points, when they are the most entrenched in their sin, and pull them up, hug them, and whisper, “Go and sin no more. Your life has changed. I love you.” Can you imagine how radical the world would see Christianity if we lived like this? If we really looked like love and not just a spiteful enemy?

• Be more like Christ every day.
• Of course, this is not the end-all, be-all list of what makes a Christian, a Christian. But it’s a place to start. And, whenever we start something, we should always have a goal in sight: and that goal should be Jesus. These two verses nicely sum up what a Christian’s goal should be every morning when they wake up:
  2 Corinthians 4:18— “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
  Hebrews 12:1-2— “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
  In every breath that we breathe, we should fix our gaze upon Jesus, upon what He desires, and tether our heart to His. When we desire to have a heart like the Savior has, He will readily answer our prayers. When we cast off the pride that blinds us, when we shake off the fear that paralyzes us, and when we reach for the love that calls us, we will grow each day to be more like Jesus. There will be ups, there will be downs. But that’s called being human: and it’s the desire to be more like Jesus that will pull us up every single day.

     I’m not Google and I’m not God, but that’s how I define: Christian.

Called to be Mary

(Photo from Pinterest)

     Most of us remember Mary in the Bible. I mean, there are many Mary’s to pick from, but it’s hard to forget Mary, the mother of Jesus. You know, the girl that was so special that God picked her to carry Jesus? Yes, that Mary. 

     When we think about Mary, it’s hard not to think about how blessed she was. How much God must have loved her, to pick her to carry the Savior of the world. She was favored by God. She was called by God; she was chosen by God. She was so special, and that’s something that we’ll never be. 

     Right?

     Wrong. 

     God didn’t love Mary more than us. John 3:16 says this: (do I even have to type this, or are you already quoting it in your head?) “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” 

     Let’s read that again.

     “For God so loved the world.”

     For 

     God

     So

     Loved

     You.

     That’s right. God doesn’t love Mary more than you. True, Mary’s blessing from God was unique and awesome, because God gave her his Son—but...if we believe John 3:16, then God didn’t give His Son just to Mary. 

     No. He gave Jesus to us. Every day, with every heartbeat, God is giving Jesus to us. He’s giving us Jesus’s sacrifice, Jesus’s love, Jesus’s peace, Jesus’s presence. Sure, Mary got to hold Jesus as a baby—which was, undeniably, awesome, but we get to hold Jesus each and every day in our hearts. 

     Which is also undeniably awesome.

     We also can’t underestimate the gifts that God has given us as unique individuals. God has given us each the Holy Spirit, and His gifts manifest themselves in different ways. 1 Corinthians 12 gives the rundown of them, and not all of them are what you think: teaching, encouragement, prophecy, wisdom, tongues, knowledge—all of these are gifts of the Holy Spirit. All of these are manifestations of the Holy Spirit. And Paul does not declare one of them better than the other: Paul writes that the Holy Spirit distributes them as He chooses to the believers. 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 says this: “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.”

     Which means that you might not have the gift of singing, but maybe you have the gift of wisdom. Maybe you don’t have the gift of prophecy, but you have the gift of teaching. One is not better than the other, one is not worth more than the other, just as Paul said. And he goes on to say in the rest of Chapter 12 how the body of Christ can’t function without all the spiritual gifts. Corinthians 12’s list is also not an exhaustive list. Romans 12 gives different examples of spiritual gifts, too: “We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully” (Romans 12:6-8).

     God has given you a gift just as He gave Mary a gift. You may think it’s small or unimportant, but if He cared enough to give it to you, then He wants you to use it! Look at it this way: if I’m a boss at a restaurant, I’m not going to give my workers a power saw because they don’t need it. Instead, I’m going to give them a knife, a pot, and an apron, because they are important to their job. 

     And I’m going to expect them to put what I gave them to good use! Remember the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30), where Jesus chastised the servant that hid his talent. And, yes, I know that the story is talking about money, literally, but on a metaphorical sense, it is talking about our spiritual gifts. God has planted these seeds of talent in us—He’s actually picked them out special for you; that’s what the Bible says!—and that means that He wants us to water them and give them sunshine, and let Him do the same. 

     Mary didn’t cower in fear from her gift. She embraced it, just as God wants us to do. 

     The second thing that I’d like to focus on was how we consider Mary chosen or called...but the same God that chose and called Mary still chooses to call us as well.

     “What? But God chose Mary to carry His Son. He definitely won’t do that for me!” 

     Won’t He? 

     Now, before you start thinking that I’m spewing heresy, let me show you this Bible verse: “Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age’” (Matthew 28:18-20). 

     These closing words in Matthew are called the Great Commission, and in it, Jesus gives the disciples and all of us what we are to do: go into the world and spread His Gospel. That means that, while Mary was chosen and called to carry Jesus in the physical sense, we are all chosen and called to carry the news of Jesus wherever we may go. And, just like Jesus still cared for His mother while on the cross (John 19:26-27), He cares about us, too, and will be with us. 

     Without Mary, the world would not have had Jesus.

     But without us, the world won’t have Jesus, either.

     If Christians shut up and sit down, if we refuse to carry the message of Jesus and tell everyone, then Christianity is over. If we don’t tell anyone else, then the Gospel dies with us. So it’s time to speak up and do what we were called to do: spread the word about Jesus! 

     My last point is this: Mary was not any more special than us. So perhaps this isn’t from the Bible, but I feel ilke VeggieTales had its heart right when it said: “God made you special, and He loves you very much.” God cares so much about the sparrows and the lilies of the valleys, and He didn’t even make them in His own image (Matthew 10:29 and Genesis 1:27). Genesis says that God created us, both male and female, in His own image. He imbued us with His wisdom, with His breath, and with His Spirit—and values us all the same. 

     This means that, believe it or not, all human beings—including you, reading this right now—are special to God. He created the world and knew that it needed one of you in it. He was excited for you to be born. He cherishes you. You are his “peculiar treasure,” just the way you are (Exodus 19:5). Isn’t it beautiful to be loved? To be treasured? To know that God would send Jesus to die on the Cross again even if it was just you that He had to save? That you are special, loved, gifted, called, and chosen, just as much as Mary was? 

     So if you’re all these things, then it’s time to start believing it. Start valuing what you have: your life, your gifts, God’s love, and God’s calling, among others. You are called to be a Mary, and nobody else can take your place. God hasn’t given anyone else your gifts, your personality, your life, in your time and space, besides you. 

     So go ahead and use them. It’s what He’s called you to do.