Trusting God (Part 3): When I Fail to Measure Up

Photo by Christian Kaindl on Unsplash

As humans, one of the biggest struggles we have is between the pride we have in ourselves and the reality that we really don’t have it all together. We like to think that we are good, successful, kindhearted and generous people. But, the reality is that we are often far from being any of those things. We, as sinful creatures, are full of rude and selfish attitudes which have a tendency to rear their ugly heads in the most inappropriate of situations. Our pride can easily get in the way of our ability to build and maintain relationships with the people around us and rob us of the opportunity to be in community with even fellow Christians.

Our pride comes out to bite us most when we are confronted by the idea (and often, reality!) that we do not, and cannot, measure up. This can happen when a college student gets his or her grades back at the end of the semester and sees that they were sorely lacking, or when we compare ourselves with people whose bodies are more aesthetically pleasing or who are successful in their lucrative career fields.

There have been plenty of moments in my life when I have been confronted with the areas in which I fail, whether it is an attitude, an assignment that didn’t turn out as well as I hoped, or even my appearance.  For example, I have been aware for a very long time that I do not, and likely never will, measure up to the standards which society has declared the epitome of “beauty” and “success.” I will probably never be super-model-thin and likely will never have any sort of lucrative job (I mean, seriously? It would be almost absurd for someone pursuing a career in youth ministry to make any large salary). But, it is really difficult when I am hit with the reality that in some (and possibly more like “many”) cases, I do not measure up to the standards which individuals hold. And it is even more challenging when I realize that I often do not even come close to measuring up to the standards I, myself, hold.

A couple months ago, I had a situation come up that not only made me realize that I could not measure up to the standards of a particular person, but didn’t even measure up to the standards I professed to hold. Yikes! Talk about a wakeup call! However, regretfully, I did not respond in a gracious manner at all. Instead, I likely came across in a high-and-mighty way (there was my pride rearing its ugly head!). Not a good representation of Christ, by any means. However, the outcome of that particular incident was that I had to be confronted with my pride and arrogance, which though difficult, was a really good thing. I also had to come to terms with the fact that I cannot look to the opinions and standards of other human beings as a measuring stick for my own worth. This is a lesson that God is continually trying to teach me and very gradually chipping away at in my heart and mind.

It is very tempting to look to other people for affirmation of our value, but the fact is that we will always find ourselves coming up short in comparison with human standards of perfection. So, to whom (if anyone) should we allow the privilege of determining our worth? My friends, we must look to the Lord and trust what His Word says about who we are and what our value is set at. Now the question is: what does the Bible say about that?

Psalm 49:7-9 says “No man can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for him – the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough – that he should live on forever and not see decay” (NIV). The value that God has placed on us is so high that no man (or woman) can pay the ransom price for a life. The key here is that no human can do anything to redeem another.

Mark 10:45 states, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (ESV).  What we as humans cannot do, God can – and did! In His great mercy, He gave His own life to pay the ransom price for us. He gave up everything to bring us into relationship with Him! That Elohim, the Sovereign God of the universe, would give His only Son to pay the price of redemption for us is astounding – and points to just how treasured we are in His eyes.

Now, I am aware that God has standards, too. He is a holy God and we are but sinners. We absolutely fail to measure up to His holiness. But, God is so gracious and merciful that He did not leave us wallowing in our sin and failures. No, He went all the way to the Cross in our place so that He could meet the standards He had set! What a great God we serve that He would go to such lengths to redeem us!

So, my friends, when we are tempted to despair at our failures to measure up to the standards of the world, let us instead look toward the Cross where God paid the ultimate price for us – establishing that our value is so great that only He can pay the ransom for our lives. He does not consider us to be failures, but rather He looks on us as His treasured children, who through Christ, measure up in His eyes.

Rather than allowing our pride to get in the way of being in fellowship with others, let’s remember that we are not our own – we have been bought at a great price – and the only opinion we should care about is God’s.

(Trusting God: Part 4)

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