Life-spark: It’s not about me. (John 3:22-30)
I remember watching a cowboy movie where one cowboy said to the other, “There’s not enough room in this town for both of us. It’s too crowded.” He patted his revolver and said, “One way or another, one of us is gonna’ be gone by sundown.”
John the Baptists and his apprentices were baptizing people in the Jordan River. They were quite an attraction. People were coming from far and wide to be baptized. When Jesus and his disciples began to do the same nearby, the tide turned, and people increasingly went to Jesus and His disciples.
Feeling belittled, John’s disciples got edgy, and complained to John about playing second fiddle to Jesus. John told his disciples what was happening was good because Jesus, not John, was the main attraction. (John 3:29)
This book points out the signs of life in John’s gospel. One sign that points to life in the fourth book of the New Testament is a different John, John the Baptist. A directional sign doesn’t invite people to come to the sign itself, it invites people to come to someone/someplace other than itself. John The Baptist was happy when people moved toward the One he called attention to.
If I want to be a sign of life, I must remember that the first four words in Rick Warren’s popular book Purpose Driven Life are so true: “It’s not about you.” I went a whole year saying that to myself at least once a day.
People helpers, including Christian leaders, make a mistake when the teach people to constantly come to them and depend on them, rather than teaching them to take their questions, needs and requests directly to God. We should beware of ‘needing to be needed.’
When my German shorthair goes on point ten feet from a pheasant that is hiding in the brush, it’s a beautiful thing. I admire the dog but quickly shift my attention to where she is pointing. The bird! That’s the main attraction.
Life-question: Would someone watching a ‘dawn to dark’ video of your life yesterday think you were the main attraction, or that the Lord was?