Recipes forLiving You and I

One of the most challenging aspects of Christian living is that of striking a balance. The tendency is for the pendulum to swing to either extreme before it comes to rest in the middle. Such has been the case in the way we regard ourselves. In past eras the fear of committing that which headed the list of the seven deadly sins (pride, envy, greed, lust, anger, laziness, gluttony) put the emphasis on humility. There is a story about a congregation that awarded one of its members a pin for being their most humble person, but they had to take it back because he wanted to wear it. Humility does not call for groveling, but in its name, persons have allowed themselves to be disrespected in many ways. Bishop Gerald Ensley said, "It is as great a sin to think too little as it is to think too highly of ourselves." Yet the current focus on self-esteem is equally treacherous.

Writings of Maxwell Maltz may help us find the middle of the pendulum sweep by reminding us that humanity was the zenith of God's creation. He put it this way: "Why do men stand in awe of the stars, and the moon, the immensity of the sea, the beauty of a flower or a sunset and at the same time downgrade themselves? Did not the same Creator make man? Is not man himself the most marvelous creation of all?" Dr. Maltz distinguishes between appreciation of one's worth in God's eyes and self-aggrandizement: "This appreciation of your own worth is not egotism unless you assume that you made yourself and should take some of the credit. Do not downgrade the product merely because you haven't used it correctly. Don't childishly blame the product for your own errors like the schoolboy who said, 'This typewriter can't spell."'1 · ·

Likewise, Dr. Maltz gave as the "biggest secret of self-esteem: begin to appreciate other people more; show respect for any human being merely because he is a child of God and therefore a 'thing of value'...Real self-esteem is not derived from the great things you've done, the things you own, the mark you've made - but an appreciation of yourself for what you are - a child of God. When you come to this realization, however, you must necessarily conclude that all people are to be appreciated for the same reason." Jesus said it this way, "You must love your neighbor as yourself.” 2
One of the tragedies of misunderstood humility is the denial of God given talents: You and I are made in the very image of God. A psalmist prayed, "It was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother's womb I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made....3 Authors Paul Brand and Philip Yancey have written a book by that title Fearfully and Wonderfully Made4 - in which they expound upon the statement on the back cover: "The human body is an endlessly fascinating repository of secrets. The miracle of the skin, the strength and structure of the bones, the dynamic balance of the muscles...your physical being is knit according to a pattern of incredible purposes." Once we begin to learn of the functions of organs, of the various systems, the intracies of each of our sensory abilities - all involuntarily we are rightfully amazed.

1 Maltz, Psychoeybernetics, 1960, Essandess, Division of Simon and Schuster, Inc., p.112

But beyond the physical body, there is the soul, the part that makes you you and me me. It is the part of us that "feels," the part that relates us to God who made us. After all else had been created, God said, "Let us make humankind in our image...and let them have dominion over (all that had been created)."5 You and I were not accidents, nor are we, as the saying goes, "junk." We have a purpose! God has a plan for our lives, "ln your book were written all the days that were formed for me, when none of them as yet existed."6

What purpose does each of us have? What blocks to God's will are set by, "I can't?" Possibly we will not be called to greatness, but (1) we are in no position to judge "greatness." As with him in whose image we were made, we, too, create every day. We can create peace or havoc, dissention or unity. Our words can kill or heal. Our treatment of one another can inspire or encourage. We have that choice, and often someone will tell us years later that something we did or said made a huge difference in their lives.

(2)If we are willing, we might be amazed at the role God planned for us. It has been the nature of God to choose the least likely to do a tremendous task. Abraham, who became the father of nations, did not have an heir until he was 100 and his wife, Sarah, was 90. Moses, who fled from Egypt because he had murdered a fellow Egyptian, was called back by God to lead his people to freedom in the Promised Land. He was 80 years old and his brother, whom God provided to help him, was 83. God appointed Gideon, the least member of the smallest tribe, to rescue the Israelites from the combined forces of the Midianite and Amalekite nations. The explanation is in Paul's discovery, when God told him, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness."7

(3) Our positive response is the open invitation for the power of God through his Holy Spirit to become operative in our lives and we discover, with Mary, that "nothing is impossible with God." Jesus' confidence in his Spirit-filled disciples in that day and this is that they (we) would do everything that he did and more! Our proper humility confesses that in our own power we can do nothing, but saying ''yes" to God's power leads to incredible adventures! 8

We are humbled to know that God did not only "so love the world," but each person in it! You and I were important enough that Jesus suffered the most ignominius death to pay the price for our souls. "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God...? You are not your own! You were bought for a price; therefore glorify God in your body." You and I can take personally God saying, "'I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, and you are mine...you are precious in my sight and I love you...Do not fear, for I am with you." Beloved, we are God's children now, what we will be has not yet been revealed.9

Author James Wagner posed the question, "Could it be that some Christians are so familiar with Jesus and his teachings that their joy is jaded their prayer life is boring, and daily

5 Gen. 1:26

6 Ps. 139:13-16

7 Gen. 21:1-5; Exo. 3:10, 7:7; Judges chs. 6-7; 2 Cor. 12:9

8 Luke 1:37; John 14:12

9 John 3:16; Mark 10:45; 1 Cor. 6:19-20; Isa. 43:1-5; 1 John 3:2

expectations of him are almost nonexistent?" Check it out: A man from India, Mr. Patel, searched for truth, peace, and eternal life. There is every known religion in India, and he read the books of every one. It was when he came to the Bible that in the book of Romans he found what he had searched for and became a Christian: "(Jesus)...was handed over to death for our trespasses and was raised for our justification. Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."10 Does that do for you and me what it did for Mr. Patel or do we fit the pattern of "some Christians" in the question asked by Dr. Wagner?

Nor has Jesus forgotten us. Evidence of how important we are is that Jesus is praying for us! What is he praying? Surely for the salvation of our souls, for he desires that all be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.11

Read in this way, the Bible is God's love letter to his children. The directives are not limitations or restrictions but "recipes" for giving us an abundant life. He wants to give us his kingdom, which Jesus came to tell about. Luke called it the kingdom of God, Matthew the kingdom of heaven. There is a mistaken connotation of "heaven" as a place where we go after earthly life has ended. It is not then but now, and not a place but a life-style. It is living with God as King, divine Ruler of our lives.12

Peter discovered this when, in his usual blunt way, he asked Jesus, in essence, "We have given up everything to follow you. What do we get out of it?" Jesus answered, "...very much more in this age, and in the age to come eternal life." "Eternal life" is now, as Jesus defined in his personal prayer, "This is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent."13

There is a final accountability. There can surely be no more awesome moment to contemplate than when we stand alone before God, stripped of what we have accumulated on earth, to give account for our years in the physical body, for each of us will be accountable to God. But there is ongoing accountability as we continually stand before the God who created us, loves us, walks with us, and wants nothing more than to be with us now and throughout eternity.14

Being made in God's image, you and I have a solemn responsibility. We demean God if we demean ourselves or another person. Being made in God's image, there is a spark of the divine within us. Personally, I hunger to be my best self, aspiring to the highest, with the promise that I am being transformed into the (image of the Lord) from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit. 15

10 Wagner The Spiritual Heart of your Health Upper Room Books, 2002; Rom.4:25-5:1