Life is not about me.
I get caught in the trap of what’s in it for me quite often. Faith can be inconvenient. Faith says Stop what you’re doing and listen or Stop and help or Go or Testify and none of that comes easily to me. I don’t like getting sidetracked and I don’t enjoy impromptu steps outside of my comfort zone. But faith is uncomfortable, or at least, it should be. It should be challenging and stretching me to be not only a better person but who God wants me to be. Faith should be taking us from our comfort zones and leading us into the mission field. That’s why we’re here, isn’t it? To proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ?
But I can’t do that if I’m thinking about myself, and only myself.
Sometimes when I get caught by a Chatty Cathy I have to remind myself that life isn’t about me. Perhaps Chatty Cathy has no one else to talk to, no one to ask for help, no one to share the burden. Perhaps Chatty Cathy prayed for a listening ear as I was walking toward her and God saw an opportunity…for her, not me, because life isn’t really about me. If I lived my life with a servant’s heart I don’t think I’d run into so many Chatty Cathys. God might be using me to be their listening ear, but He’s also using them to remind me that my life’s priorities should be serving God and the people He came to serve. I can’t control what other people think of me, but I should be conscious that my behavior, my actions, and my attitude reflect back on my God.
We’ve had a whirlwind couple of weeks. I found it hard to confide in my friends about a particular situation because I couldn’t find the positive. I was simultaneously hosting and trying to leave a melodramatic pity-party. But today I saw a Facebook post and it slapped me on the back of my head. Essentially it read: look how far we’ve come in one year.
Look how far we’ve come. What was impossible a year ago is possible today. What was a dream a year ago is a living, tangible thing today. What was a goal a year ago is now a milestone.
Look how far we’ve come.
And I heard a voice: How far have you come, Meg? Are you moving forward or standing still?
Confession: I am standing still in just about every area of my life. I can offer excuses and reasons as to why that is, but ultimately, it’s because my life has been revolving around me and my grandiose dreams instead of the plans that God has for me. The year isn’t over yet, but one way or another the calendar will close and we’ll be forced to look back on how we spent our time in 2021.
How far have you come? Are you moving forward or standing still?
Pie, anyone?