Beginning vs. Middle
"Don't compare your beginning to someone else's middle." --Jon Acuff
The first thing that came to mind when I read this quote was my working out/running ability. There are A LOT of people who can run farther than I can. There are a lot of people who are stronger than I am. When I thought about it though, those people have worked harder for a longer period of time. Many of them do not eat some of the things that I simply "can't live without" (Chick-Fil-A sweet tea).
Comparisons are so difficult, because most of the time we do not realize that we are comparing our beginning to someone else's middle. How do we keep from doing this? We must keep our progress in perspective. We aren't to compare to others. Christ is the standard, and none of us can ever come close.
When I began thinking about my spiritual life in regards to this quotation, I realized how applicable it was. I also realized the importance of being able to name those people who are farther along than myself rather than getting caught up in the fact that I was "behind."
I read a blog post last week about the sharpening of each other in a spiritual sense, meaning those individuals who do more than offer dinner company, a ride home, or a gift on your birthday. These individuals (those who sharpen) model a life worthy of the Gospel. They come alongside us to support, challenge, and even risk offending in an effort to intentionally sharpen us. Sharpening is intentional. It is hard. It is tangible, truthful. We NEED it.
A sharpener says, "Let me walk beside you. I want to lead you closer to Christ." We must be open to the sharpener telling us what they see that we might be blinded to. When I was in college, I had several who acted as sharpeners in my life. Lately, I have been the sharpener, but I have not been sharpened. We must learn to balance the two.
The first thing that came to mind when I read this quote was my working out/running ability. There are A LOT of people who can run farther than I can. There are a lot of people who are stronger than I am. When I thought about it though, those people have worked harder for a longer period of time. Many of them do not eat some of the things that I simply "can't live without" (Chick-Fil-A sweet tea).
Comparisons are so difficult, because most of the time we do not realize that we are comparing our beginning to someone else's middle. How do we keep from doing this? We must keep our progress in perspective. We aren't to compare to others. Christ is the standard, and none of us can ever come close.
When I began thinking about my spiritual life in regards to this quotation, I realized how applicable it was. I also realized the importance of being able to name those people who are farther along than myself rather than getting caught up in the fact that I was "behind."
I read a blog post last week about the sharpening of each other in a spiritual sense, meaning those individuals who do more than offer dinner company, a ride home, or a gift on your birthday. These individuals (those who sharpen) model a life worthy of the Gospel. They come alongside us to support, challenge, and even risk offending in an effort to intentionally sharpen us. Sharpening is intentional. It is hard. It is tangible, truthful. We NEED it.
A sharpener says, "Let me walk beside you. I want to lead you closer to Christ." We must be open to the sharpener telling us what they see that we might be blinded to. When I was in college, I had several who acted as sharpeners in my life. Lately, I have been the sharpener, but I have not been sharpened. We must learn to balance the two.
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