VIP: VAIN, INEFFECTIVE PERSON?
He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less (John 3:30 NLT).
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When I was beginning my 40–year trek on the pastoral pathway (some of it through the desert?), someone told me a vital truth: “No one is as interested in what you have to say as YOU are.” It offended me a little, at the time (yes, I’m a VIP), but by now I get it. It’s pure truth, believe me. I wonder how many words I’ve spoken (and written) in ministry, and how many are remembered by my listeners (and readers). The famous preacher–teacher, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, once said that his goal was not to make people into preachers, it was to make preachers into people. IOW, WHO we are is more influential than WHAT we say.
John the Baptist articulated one of life’s most important principles. Trouble mushrooms from our sense of self–importance. John knew the key to life: Jesus becoming greater and greater, while surrendering yourself to Him. It’s a simple rule, but it collides head–on with our fallen human nature. How could you let Jesus become greater in your life? No offense.
Adapted from ANGEL FOOD for July 16, by Curtis Alexander
Go to www.drcurtis-alexander.com for more info, including excerpts from PANTS ON FIRE; also BEING LIKE JESUS and JOURNEYS FROM HERE TO ETERNITY, both from Leadership Books, Inc. You can order all the books on Amazon.com or from the author; email me at ckalex1402@gmail.com for special offers and book bundles.
