So...I'm sitting at the kitchen table on a lovely mid-autumn afternoon and suddenly, it strikes me...I am the PERFECT child! I am very dedicated to my school work, I never fall behind or skip classes, I get good grades, I stay out of trouble, I've never needed to be told twice to avoid things like drugs and alcohol, I'm a leader at my youth group, I work long hours at my job and save all my money for the future, AND I help around the house making sure to spend time with each of my family members...I mean, who wouldn't want to be my parents right?
So I get the brilliant idea to remind my parents how lucky they are to have me as their kid...how proud they should be. I walk over to my parents who are sitting on the couch together drinking their protein shakes (both of them are on this "FABULOUS" health kick these days) and rehash all the details about why I needed to be admired.
As you might be able to imagine...the response I receive is an initial shocked silence.
Eventually, my parents are able to recover, but they don't praise me like I expect...
"Wow," my mother says. "That's really prideful of you to say...you better be careful of that attitude. Pride goes before a fall!"
My dad follows with, "You should be thanking God that he blessed you with such a benign disposition...thank Him that you turned out the way you did."
Hmmm...well that's insulting...basically, I have nothing to do with this? Basically all of the good choices I've made, all of the times I avoided peer pressure and did the right thing, all of the good grades I get and all of the good things I've done in life...all of those things have nothing to do with me? I get NO credit?
Well then...
I was kinda angry to be honest. I wanted to be praised for how hard I tried to get things right. After all, it wasn't as if it was easy to be a good child, especially in light of some of the struggles I've been through.
But the more I thought about it, the more I realized how right my parents are...in the words of Bon Iver, "I am not magnificent."
So how did I come to this conclusion? I'M SO GLAD YOU ASKED! :D
Okay, here's the deal, we are all created by a loving and kind Father who designs us with care. We are designed with a specific purpose in mind. We are given personalities, talents, and abilities to aid us in accomplishing these purposes. But our strengths can also our weaknesses, and our weaknesses vary greatly. Weaknesses and temptations can turn into problems and sins...and in the vast variations of these things there is no greater or worse sin, temptation, problem, or weakness...they all bring us equally far away from the relationship with our Father. (The Bible says God hate lying above all else but...everyone lies and struggles with dishonesty or deceit so it's not exactly relevant to the point I'm trying to make)
So when observing these struggles and temptations, these weaknesses and sins, all shortcomings of perfection... it needs to be noted that their degree of severity is judged by the world...like to some people adultery is a greater sin than drunkenness or maybe stealing a greater sin than lusting.
In any case, the things I happen to struggle with, my temptations and sins are not deemed severe by the world and thus I am granted with a sense of perfection. I'm constantly praised for my success and wisdom but in reality, I am still a sinner. I am no better or worse than anyone else.
I was graced with temptations that don't outwardly ruin my worldly life. I am not struggling with self-destructive temptations and weaknesses that destroy reputations and relationships and for that I SHOULD be grateful. I am blessed.
In addition, I've been blessed with strong characteristics of endurance and perseverance that God gave me to help me run the long race that has been set before me. These gifts are not ones I attained on my own, I was GIVEN them!
In reality, the only credit I can take for the good in my life is the decision I made to hand it over to Christ. When I gave Him the control; when I continue to do it every day, I am allowing the good in Him become the good that people see in me.
P.s. I chose this song because it makes me want to dance...and because it's true, it ain't about me...it's always been about God!