A sober judgment
Jacob Ninan
A sober judgment"not to think … more highly … but to think with sober judgment” (Rom.12:3 ESV) All of us will admit that we don’t know everything. But the sobering fact is that we don’t even know all about ourselves! When we think about ourselves, we like to smooth over our rough edges, justify our failures, pass the blame on others, and end up with a picture that is rosier than the real one. God knows the real us, and He wants to transform us into His image. How can He do this if we won’t even admit our need for such transformation, if we keep insisting that everything is just fine?
Our opinion of ourselves may be the ‘ideal self’ and it is possible that this is very different from our ‘real self’. How can we become our ideal self, or rather what God wants to make of us, if we will not first of all acknowledge that certain things need to change in our life?
Sometimes other people can see things in us that we ourselves can’t see! When we hear them, if we react with denial or self-justification, how can we make any progress?
Some people have an aversion towards self-assessment, because they think that it would cause them pain. They would rather think positively, dwell in their world of ‘ideal self’, and fool themselves into believing that everything is great. But to take time to be honest with ourselves is a great step towards healing and ultimate greatness of life. Even though exposing ourselves to an honest examination and then to correction can be as painful as going for surgery, we will agree that it will be a most health-giving step towards ourselves, God and others.
Some people blame circumstances and everybody else for their poor performance at work. Where will that take us? If we begin with an honest self-assessment, that can be the most valuable investment we can make in our career growth.
Lord, I admit I tend to hide the reality about myself and to think high thoughts. Help me to be honest before You and myself so that You can lead me towards Your goal for my life.
Published in Management Devotional - Biblical insights for daily work life 2016, Christian Institute of Management.