My mom sent this joke meme to me…”Why did the art thief’s van run out of gas as he drove away from the museum? Because he had no Monet to buy Degas to make the Van Gogh.” Ba-dum-bump! (except it doesn’t make sense if you pronounce “Degas” correctly)
“Excuses might be found for a thief who steals because he is starving.” Proverbs 6:30 (NLT)
And the 2020 memes just keep rolling in!
“When they try to escape an iron weapon, a bronze-tipped arrow will pierce them.” Job 20:24 (NLT)
As a teacher, I’ve had my fill of know-it-alls in my classes. So many people give the impression that they have nothing new to learn or have no room for improvement. Many often want to share what they know and tell their personal stories, as if graciously imparting their own wisdom onto the teacher and listeners. They are the expert in their eyes. There’s a lack of humility, and most of the time they don’t even know it.
I was praying for a difficult student one time. She was a bit of a know-it-all, frequently interrupting me and others to share her own insight and stories. It often seemed like it didn’t even occur to her that she might need to learn what was being taught. I realized that some of the things she was doing were things of which I have also been guilty. Isn’t interesting how we can see some of our own flaws pointed out in others? (See Practical Step #2 in this post) As I was praying for God to humble her I realized that I too need to be humbled. Boy was that humbling! 😉
However, praying “Humble me” can be a dangerous prayer! It can potentially invite in embarrassment, looking bad in front of others, having our wrongs being made evident, or being put in our place. This can be especially hard if you’re a people pleaser or care to much about what people think about you. We might know that we need to be humbled but might not be quite ready to go through the humbling process just yet!
Even though the humbling process might be difficult or even embarrassing at times, we shouldn’t avoid asking God to humble us (or humbling ourselves) because of how it might make us look. Self-image should not be a determining factor nor should attempts to please others. Our aim should always be to please God, even if there’s a cost.
“For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” Galatians 1:10 (ESV)
“It is dangerous to be concerned with what others think of you, but if you trust the LORD, you are safe.” Proverbs 29:25 (GNT)
“For they loved human praise more than the praise of God.” John 12:43 (NLT)
“You like to receive praise from one another, but you do not try to win praise from the one who alone is God; how, then, can you believe me?” John 5:44 (CEV)
“Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.” Colossians 3:23 (NLT)
I’ve discovered with age that people tend to get on my nerves a lot more. I don’t like people as easily as I used to. Quite frankly, I have less patience to put up with people’s crap. This has sometimes made it difficult for me to create relationships with people that annoy me. I went through a period several years ago where I was having to relearn how to be a friend.
It was actually kind of weird and awkward. I always considered myself a person who makes friends easily. I had a lot of friends in high school, in college, and at work. Unfortunately though, due to seasons in life, transitions, and seasons of friendships, there was a period where I found myself with fewer close friends than I used to have. I just assumed making close friends would be easy, a piece of cake. I had a wake-up call–it wasn’t! It takes work. I had to be a lot more intentional and purposeful about it.
Something I learned was that I had to put myself out there and step outside of my comfort zone a lot. I had to place myself in settings where making and cultivating friendships was possible. Through that process there were a lot of people that I just flat-out didn’t like. They were annoying! Who wants an annoying friend? Therefore, I would immediately write a lot of people off…
Annoying friend alert!! She’s a know-it-all (imagine a loud buzzer sound here)
Annoying friend alert!! She talks too much (buzzer sound again)
Annoying friend alert!! She talks like an immature teenager (another buzzer sound)
Annoying friend alert!! She’s selfish, always wants to do things her way, interrupts me all the time, brags too much… (buzzer, buzzer, buzzer)
I’m sure you get the picture. I could go on and on about why I decided someone would be an annoying friend. The thing is, it seemed like anyone I met somehow got on my nerves. Then I realized… Continue reading
Here’s another relatable meme that was on my weekly work newsletter. For the most part, I’m the Type A…except for maybe my emails. My the red bubble on my emails is typically always pretty high, not gonna lie! 🙂 It’s never been over 10,000 though.
“In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well…” Romans 12:6a (NLT)
Do you know the power that you have on your side and behind you? So many people are unaware or forget that God is on their side. It’s easy to feel defeated and discouraged when we lose sight of this. Therefore this week I’d like to share some scriptures to inform you and build your confidence in the fact that the Lord is on your side!
I mentioned in the post about using our spiritual authority against the enemy that we need to know that we are God’s children, and that we have the one true and only God on our side to back us up and empower us. God loves us. He is for us, not against us. God is our biggest cheerleader. We can rest confident in Him.
A word of caution here…God is on the side of the righteous, those in right-standing with him because of accepting the sacrifice of Jesus. God is on the side of truth—His word is truth (John 17:17). God is on our side when we are on HIS side. Additionally, just because God is on our side does not mean that we are always guaranteed immediate success nor that we are spared hard times or trouble (John 16:33).
“What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?” Romans 8:31 (NLT)
“My enemies will retreat when I call to you for help. This I know: God is on my side!” Psalm 56:9 (NLT)
“The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? The LORD is on my side as my helper; I shall look in triumph on those who hate me.” Psalm 118:6-7 (ESV)
“What if the LORD had not been on our side? Let all Israel repeat: What if the LORD had not been on our side when people attacked us?” Psalm 124:1-2 (NLT)
“For the LORD will be at your side and will keep your foot from being snared.” Proverbs 3:26 (NIV)
“See, the Sovereign LORD is on my side! Who will declare me guilty? All my enemies will be destroyed like old clothes that have been eaten by moths!” Isaiah 50:9 (NLT)
“Then my enemies will see that the LORD is on my side. They will be ashamed that they taunted me, saying, “So where is the LORD— that God of yours?” With my own eyes I will see their downfall; they will be trampled like mud in the streets.” Micah 7:10 (NLT)
“But the LORD stands beside me like a great warrior. Before him my persecutors will stumble. They cannot defeat me. They will fail and be thoroughly humiliated. Their dishonor will never be forgotten.” Jeremiah 20:11 (NLT)
“The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.” Exodus 14:14 (NIV) Continue reading
This 2020 version of Goodnight Moon meme was in one of my work newsletters this week. I had a good laugh, but I also had some fun nostalgic flashbacks of finding the mouse on each page with my kids when they were itty-bitty. 🙂
“The sun and moon will grow dark, and the stars will no longer shine.” Joel 3:15 (NLT)
Here’s a fun idea… If you answer the phone with, “Hello! You’re on the air!” most telemarketers will quickly hang up.
“…Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7 (NIV)
Per copyright, you cannot copy the content of this page. Contact us for copy permission.