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The Master's Approval

I have never been all that humble. Even when I've tried to be humble, I've gotten proud of how humble I was. Tell me you didn't see that coming. But it's true. I believe I am as much a victim as anyone since Generation X where we all believe we're above average. But ask anyone that understand math and they'll tell you that 50% of people are below average. There's no way around that. But if you asked me, I'd tell you I wasn't in that 50%.

So maybe having a healthy self-esteem isn't such a bad thing. But I see it crowd in on my relationship with God. Since I want to please God and do good things for God, I try my best. So far, so good, right? But let's assume I actually do something with excellence. After everything goes as planned, I spend too much time patting myself on the back. And believe me, any time patting yourself is too much time.

But it's just for God, right? Yes, but then you have scriptures like this hit you square in the eyes...

Hebrews 3:1-6
"So, my dear Christian friends, companions in following this call to the heights, take a good hard look at Jesus. He's the centerpiece of everything we believe, faithful in everything God gave him to do. Moses was also faithful, but Jesus gets far more honor. A builder is more valuable than a building any day. Every house has a builder, but the Builder behind them all is God. Moses did a good job in God's house, but it was all servant work, getting things ready for what was to come. Christ as Son is in charge of the house."

I'm so enthralled with hearing I did a good job that I forget it's just servant work. So, do you want to encourage me? Try not telling me it was a job well done. Then maybe I'll listen more closely for the Master's approval.
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