Before heading out to our first country on the world race, our squad met up for one more week of training. On one of the nights during a worship session, I had two people individually come up to me and give me the word “Shepherd”. So, I sought out scripture as well as Google (I was curious). One of the definitions stood out to me saying “…to guide or direct in a particular direction.” So simple. My job is to point people to Jesus. When problems arise and people are struggling, who better to fix us then the One who created us?
During the same week, I had a previous squad mate from my race write me a letter saying, “Andrea, you are not suppose to fix people’s problems. Only God can.” I have struggled with feeling this way throughout my entire life, like I NEED to fix things so people don’t get hurt or try to stop a situation that could lead to a bad consequence. But aren’t those moments the prime opportunities for growth? Am I going to let my prideful heart stop somebody from possibly healing?
There are times that the Lord calls us to speak and act, but never does He want us to take His place and get the glory for doing something because it’s Him doing it through us. Like I said in my previous blog, I am simply a vessel. I find myself wanting the acknowledgment and affirmation of fixing things as well as people when really, am I not as broken as they are in some capacity? Aren’t we all messy? By giving humans the glory instead of the Lord, we are asking for prideful hearts. And a prideful heart is a big reason why the world is the way it is today…
“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” -Proverbs 16:18
“For everything in the world- the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life comes not from the Father but from the world.” -1 John 2:16
“…do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.” -Romans 12:3
If you’re struggling with pride as well, if you’re wanting to fix people and situations around you because you want peace, then I have a prayer for you and I:Lord, thank You for all You’ve done for us. Thank You that YOU are the source of healing and fixing. Thank You for bringing out this awareness of pride in our hearts. Often times we think we are helping, but actually it can be hindering. It’s not that You don’t want us to help people, but helping somebody doesn’t mean we always need to fix peoples problems nor does it mean we always need to stop bad outcomes from happening (it takes discernment on which situations to speak up and act on). Thank You for this insight. Help us to trust You with situations in our lives that are out of our control. In fact, help us to surrender the control that we currently have over situations. We don’t know what’s best for people, only You do. Help us to be shepards and point people to You. Thank You for taking these burdens and loving us so well.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
