What Do You Want More Of?

Over the past few days, I’ve found myself in the crosshairs of feeling very inadequate in the “smarts” department.  You know, when you talk to someone and you can only smile and nod while you’re simultaneously thinking in your head, “what the heck are they talking about?!” and “Please don’t ask me what I think.” and “How can I change the subject… like pronto tonto?” or when someone talks to you about what they’re doing or learning and you just feel utterly lame like, “Oh.  I don’t do any of that.” and “Goodness, they just have so many intelligent and impressive things coming out of their mouth!”

Quite honestly, this seems to happen to me a lot.  It’s humbling, to say the least. 

Well, this time around it got me thinking about the fact that there will always be striving and, as Ecclesiastes says, that is vanity. 

There will always be someone who is…

smarter

prettier

more fit

more knowledgeable

getting the promotion

more well-off

more at ease

funnier

better looking

more put together (or appears that way)

more traveled

more experienced

richer

more impressive

and the list goes on!

So, then I started thinking about not striving for the above list but instead focusing on more important and more eternal things.  How much better would my life and my days be if I quit looking at getting more earthly things, that will fade away, and instead began looking at gaining things and characteristics that will last forever?  What would that practically look like in and mean for my life? 

I want to be a person who is…

studying Scripture

giving to the poor and needy  (i.e. living life without pockets)

recklessly extravagant (like the father of the prodigal son)

using my time, talent, and treasure for the Kingdom

learning from God and others

growing in the fruit of the Spirit

abiding in Him

dependent on God and not myself

asking for forgiveness

hearing the gospel and applying it

healthy in order to do what God has called me to do

glorifying God [in all that I say and do]

active in church

prayerful

real

and the list goes on!

If you think about it, both lists will take hard work, practice, perseverance, and more.  Personally, I’d like to spend my time on the latter list.