Exodus 28-31; Philippians 2

By Becky Hill Martin

“It’s me. Hi! I’m the problem. It’s me.” (You can thank me later for that Taylor Swift earworm.) I’m not in any way a “Swiftie,” but that’s the lyric that popped into my brain when I read Philippians 2. Paul wrote to the struggling church of Philippi to help them understand what it means to be a Christian. Paul expected Christians to live in the same unity, humility, and servanthood Jesus demonstrated. This is where I’m the problem.

How many times have I put “me” before “we”? How many times have I tried like a teen in 2019 to live a VSCO life? So self-absorbed in painting a perfect picture of myself that I filtered the real entirely out of it. And, how can I be a servant when I “humble-brag” on myself with a selfie on social media, caption: “Praise God for letting me use MY amazing talent to organize a fundraiser for ‘charity X.’ I raised over…”? The only way I can live as a Christian when I know I’m the problem is because my God is very forgiving and very loving.

PRAYER: God, I praise You for working in me – the one who tries, fails, complains, fails, yet still fights to do what pleases You. When I get in my own way and become the problem, set me back on my feet so I can be a shining, unfiltered light for You. Amen.