Peacocks

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.  For just as each of us has one body with many members and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body and each member belongs to all the others.  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 12:3

This has always been one of my favorite verses and, over the years at Eastridge I have so enjoyed the Gallup program to live your strength and I think that model is beautifully represented in this verse. While we are encouraged to focus on our strengths and our successes we must also humble ourselves and not think more highly of ourselves. In a generation full of social media and nearly constant self-comparisons to those around us this can be daunting. I recently read an article about letting go of your ego and recognizing your imperfections.  A few of the statements that have really stuck with me are:

1)            God knows that we are imperfect and he wants us to know that he knows. He know that sometimes we are tired and we may not respond to a cry for help in a timely manner. He knows that sometimes we are ANNOYED by another person and we do everything in our power to avoid them. He knows that we spend money on frivolous things when others struggle to put food on the table or a roof over their head. We know that we make bad decisions and God knows too, and we can’t hide from those.

2)            God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble (I Peter 5:5).  We must be willing to accept our shortfalls and acknowledge that we are human, remembering again that God loves us in spite of our flaws. While it can be hard to be humble, I try to remember stories of Jesus and his humility. In the gospels of Matthew and Luke we know that Jesus was a healer and he was relied upon by many to take away any variety of infirmity. With these gifts, it was not as though Jesus advertised himself as the top healer for the region. He didn’t follow the “get rich or die trying” compass of our current country and he didn’t run around bragging about his success. 

Those are both points I want to focus on in my life. Recognizing that I’m not perfect and God loves me anyway, and recognizing that I don’t have to be right, and I don’t have to tell people about the good things that I have done, because they can be reflected by my grace.

We all know a peacock – someone who prances about and brags over every success, every achievement, every possession. A person who is always busy telling you all the great things about them and their life. Research tells us that, from a psychological standpoint, people peacock because of a desire to be accepted, or in an effort to feel better about themselves by “one-upping” someone else. God knows that I’m not perfect, and He knows that I can barely stand to be around a peacock. Sometimes I think He puts them in front of me to help teach me patience and to exercise my grace. Other times I think that He uses them to force me to make a decision. As I think about the peacocks in my world and how hard I work to avoid them, I must also remember my own humility and imperfection and find a balance in the life that I live. There will always be peacocks, but I do not have to entertain their self-importance in my life.   

Prayer: Most holy God, please help me in my daily trials, help me to accept your love and guidance. Help us all to remember our imperfections and your love for us in spite of them. Give me patience with the peacocks! Amen

Christi Moock