We are more than our accomplishments
Romans 8:37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
It is a complete joy to see so many people graduating. Facebook and Instagram are lit up with smiling graduates flanked with family and friends. Some have overcome great odds and adversity, and that walk across the stage to receive their diploma is like a well- earned victory lap. Way to go graduates! Because though most everyone has the ability, not everyone is willing to muster up the grit to stay the course. You have achieved much and that achievement is worth the reward of a diploma and, of course, a bit of celebration. In a world where everyone gets a trophy or a ribbon just for showing up, it is refreshing that a there are standards for academic achievement. It makes the accomplishment mean something.
Unfortunately, this ‘everyone gets a trophy’ mentality has slipped into the academic world. According an article in The Columbus Dispatch a few years ago, one school district had 222 Valedictorians with 90 of them coming from one high school. A Valedictorian is supposed to be the highest-ranking student in the school. We as a society don’t like ranking and the competition it brings, as we feel it can damage self-esteem. Tim Elmore wrote about this in one of his recent email/posts (by the way if you have kids, grandkids, or work with students, I encourage you to subscribe to his newsletter). Elmore says a little competition is good, and it is okay to award top honors as it is a real-world experience. As well, we are more than our accomplishments and we should not tie our worth and value to what we can or can’t achieve.
The truth is our self-esteem comes from whom we are, and the truth is we are a wonderful, hand-crafted creation of God.
Psalms 139:14 I praise You (God), for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are Your works;My soul knows it very well.
We are not a mistake regardless of what we do or don’t do or what people say about us. We are more. I love the song You Are More by 10th Avenue North that explains we are more…”You are more than the choices that you’ve made, You are more than the sum of your past mistakes, You are more than the problems you create.” See, we are more! We are hand-crafted creations God knit together inside our mom. We are God’s masterpieces built to do good in this world.
Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Yes, we can get caught up in achievements and wealth, but as King Solomon said (who, by the way, is the wealthiest and wisest that has ever lived) in Ecclesiastes 2:1-11 that money, possessions, power, and privilege are all vanity or a waist of time. Actually, the Bible book of Ecclesiastes is all about Solomon seeking what’s important in life and where our value lies. He concludes the book with this…
Ecclesiastes 12:13 The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
To fear God is to recognize Him as Creator and to find our worth in Him. You are more!! So seek to know Him more and let who He has created you to be fill you with value, significance, and more.
Church can be a great place to learn more of God and our value in Him. Actually, this past Sunday we talked about experiencing God as our “Abba Father” from the Bible book of Romans 8:12-17. You can find that message at https://cypresschurch.net/sermons. If you don’t already have a church you regularly attend, we would like to invite you to Cypress Church or any of our branch churches.
Our website has more information: http://www.cypresschurch.net. You can even attend one of our live-streaming services on line (see http://live.cypresschurch.net/).
Seeking to be that “more” we were created to be along with you,
Mike McKay