One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

Who do I really live for? When I set the week’s priorities and make my annual plans, who do these truly benefit? These are hard questions if we ask them deeply of ourselves. And reality is, we must dig down deep inside ourselves to, many times, find the true answers.

For me, not until I was willing to truly wrestle with these question did I see clearly the root-cause problem to much of my struggles in life. I had given lip service to putting God first, but in the living out of it, my priorities and my goals would take precedent. Sometimes, when we try to handle our problems ourselves, they just get bigger and we get depleted — then we may feel like “The Walking Dead”! Man-made priorities and goals in the end always fail to deliver, because deep down we really want a true and faithful relationship with an Almighty God. It is what we were designed for, nothing else satisfies. I think most of our comparison problems stem from this internal battle. We compare ourselves to others in many ways: who we hang with, our title or position, how much money we have, how much influence we have, our assets, our vacations, our physical beauty, the beauty of those close to us, how much we are needed or in demand, etc. This list can go on and on. This comparison mindset leads us to limit our true potential in Jesus. Comparing to others and measuring ourselves against them is a byproduct of not understanding who we are created to be — God’s children. When we humble ourselves under his mighty hand, deal with the roots of sin in our hearts, that allows God’s Spirit to heal and transform us … and we shine!

Lord, I come to you a broken man in need of your touch. You alone can fill the void in my heart. You can quell the rough waters in my mind and soul. You can feed me food this earth does not know when my heart is hungry. And you can restore joy to my spirit when all around seems to be in turmoil. Praise you Father! I CLAIM YOU over all the challenges this world puts in front of me!