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Weekly Wisdom Winnows
by Lisa Mendenhall
Are you one that has a tendency of comparing yourself to others? Do you compare your children to other children? Your parenting skills to others parenting skills? Do you compare your job, money, church, pastor, car, home, family, even your spouse to others?
How does it make you feel when you or your family or things do not measure up to whom or what you compare them too? Doesn't it make you feel inferior? Doesn't it make you feel like you are just not quite as good as others? This is not a good feeling and it DOES NOT COME from God. What about when you compare you, family or things and it does measure up to better than? How do you feel then? Does it make you feel proud? Does it make you feel just a little bit superior to them? You can get a feeling of false joy over this area. This is not a good feeling and it DOES NOT COME from God.
Do you see the dangers of comparing who you are and what you have to other people? You will never measure up or you will over measure every time. This type of thinking [wisdom] is earthy, sensual and devilish. It brings envy, strife, confusion and every evil work, so it can not be from God. Godly wisdom and thinking is pure, peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and full of good fruits. It does not show partiality and it is not hypocritical. It always brings peace. This is what James 3:13-18 says;
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Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? Let him show out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom. 14 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. 15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, and devilish. 16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. 17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. 18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.I just want to encourage today, to start practicing being on an equal level thinking in every area of your life. Because no matter what it looks like in the natural, IN CHRIST, we have all been put on an even surface, no one above another. We are all one in Christ with just different positions and different life styles. We are all here for the same reason and supposed to be doing all things for Christ and through Christ. When you compare yourself to the gospel and what it says about you, you begin to realize it doesn't matter what position we hold in this life. We are here to glorify Christ and to present Him to the world in our own calling and in the way God has us doing it. He has called us all too different positions and different areas so that we will be a well rounded body of Christ. And actually we do not have the right to compare ourselves or what we have to others, because that is like the foot of Christ comparing itself to the ear and saying, I am not as good as you because I am under you and I can't hear, all I can do is walk. We need one another. We are the body of Christ. Comparison is a very dangerous thing and it will keep you from fulfilling your God given destiny. I urge you to start today, watching out for this very slick and subtle trick of the devil. And when you notice it happening, immediately take your authority over it and cast down that vain imagination. You will be a much happier person and much more joyful to be around because you will be free from inferior or superior thinking and you will be a valuable tool to Jesus Christ in His Kingdom. Be Blessed! Lisa
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'To separate the chaff from (grain) by means of a current of air. To rid of undesirable parts. To separate or get rid of (an undesirable part); eliminate: winnowing out the errors in logic. ...separate grain from chaff...separate the good from the bad...examine closely in order to separate the good from the bad; sift...' (www.dictionary.com) 'This study gave me direction and focus for my teaching. God had placed a longing in my heart to teach the body of Christ how to separate from carnal thinking and rid themselves of old ways that hinder their Spiritual growth. I desire to see them live victoriously, by the 'higher ways' of God's wisdom.'
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