Better Than I Used to Be
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2 Peter 1:5-8 KJV
And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
I’m better than I used to be, but not as good as I will be. For some odd reason this statement has been running through my mind for the past day or so. This scripture expands upon my seemingly idle ramblings. It is never wise to “rest on our laurels.” That’s one of those sayings I’ve heard forever and never really knew the origin of it, though I understood the general terms what it meant. I looked it up this morning, and found this: to be content with one's past or present honors, achievements.
So just because we’re better than we used to be, we shouldn’t stop working on ourselves. We will never reach the perfection of Christ on this earth, but we are to continually and diligently strive for that goal. We are to look at our lives and then look at the world, and figure out how to act in ways that will improve both. The practice of recycling is more common now than it was a few years ago. Our family recycles a lot. As I’m typing this it occurs to me that our way of taking the next step is to also consume less.
That’s one example of how we can continue to strive to be better citizens. We can do something similar as Christians. We can take a bible study and really read the entire assigned lesson. We can spend time in prayer about how what we read applies to our lives. We can ask God to guide and direct us in applying the lessons learned.
Babbi Mason is a Christian singer who has a voice that is as big as heaven. The title of one of her songs is “I Will Be The One.” She sings, “I will be the one God is looking for . . .” In the simplest terms, that’s how we live out the instructions in the scripture. Be the one God is looking for. Step out. Step up. Take a stand and stick to it. Do more than is required. Be more than you have to. Get better and better every day.
Get up early and spend that time with God. That’s what I’m reintegrating into my life. I’ve had some time to adjust to a new work schedule – early, early mornings. But if I sleep until the last minute, I won’t hear those birds outside chattering away. I won’t see the sunrise. I won’t get better than I used to be!
My prayer today is that you continue to strive for perfection in Jesus Christ. And that you never rest on your laurels when it comes to your faith.
Mary
