“For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.”
Romans 12:3 KJV
This scripture has been resonating in my spirit since my Pastor (father) spoke it at Bible Study last Wednesday. There’s so much in this one verse in Romans.
The commentary written by McClaren on Biblehub.com states,
“Faith is trust, the attitude of receptivity. There are in it a consciousness of need, a yearning desire and a confidence of expectation. It is the open empty hand held up with the assurance that it will be filled; it is the empty pitcher let down into the well with the assurance that it will be drawn up filled. It is the precise opposite of the self-dependent isolation which shuts us out from God.”
This eloquently put commentary speaks to me! It’s a reminder that our faith is definitely based on how much we truly trust God. We can SAY we trust God all we want, but the proof is in our fruits. And sometimes when God shuts a door, we try to go about it a different way to “do it on our own” as if God needs some kind of help with us!
We tend to be quick to accept God’s “yes” but God is an All-Knowing God and we must be JUST AS QUICK to accept His “no” and His “not right now”. And sometimes that “no” may be because what we are desiring is not what God is desiring for our life.
We must not think so highly of ourselves that we think we know better than God about what is BEST for us!
This past week when I asked the class what is hindering them from progressing in school, one student said, “it’s me.” He said, “I am my biggest obstacle.” He said, “Mrs. Smith, I need to learn how to get out of my own way!”
I told my student, “YOU BETTER PREACH!” If a 16 year old can recognize it, what’s our excuse!?
GET. OUT. OF. YOUR. OWN. WAY.