At the start of each new year, I feel the urge to take life more seriously: my Bible reading, my prayer habits, my discipline, my health, my relationships, my finances, my words, my fitness, my marriage. And yet, despite all I should take more seriously, there’s only one thing I reliably take way too seriously, year after year: myself.
But it’s hard not to, right? How could I not take myself seriously?
If my Instagram followers could see a little more Luke, it’d make their day. If my wife’s problems could hear a little more advice from Luke, they’d disappear. If the online Christian community could receive one more article from Luke, the universal church would join together, harmonizing in a beautiful chorus for eternity. If the world had a little more Luke, everything would be OK. Or so I reason.
But while taking myself too seriously has provided delightful dopamine hits of self-righteousness, it has also led me to adopt an identity I wasn’t expecting—that of a slave.
Slavery of Taking the Self Too Seriously
What happens when I take myself too seriously?
I become a slave to entitlement; I can’t be grateful for gifts, because I deserve them.
I become a slave to scarcity; I can’t be generous, because I’m afraid I’ll run out.
I become a slave to tribalism; I can’t respectfully disagree, because I’m the ultimate defender of truth.
I become a slave to resentment; I can’t offer grace, because they should’ve known better than to insult me.
I become a slave to overworking; I can’t rest, because the world depends on what I accomplish today.
I become a slave to shame; I can’t accept forgiveness, because I know I’m “better” than that.
I become a slave to sin.
Ancient Temptation
We humans have been taking ourselves too seriously since the beginning. When Eve saw the fruit hanging from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, she believed the Serpent’s words: “You will be like God” (Gen. 3:5). Here’s Eve, a finite woman, standing on the ground that was made for her, under a sun she needs to survive, breathing oxygen her lungs require, deciding whether to eat a fruit she believes will make her like the infinite, invincible, all-knowing, all-powerful God who breathed life into existence—and who already made her in his image.
We humans have been taking ourselves too seriously since the beginning.
Eve took herself too seriously. She believed the distance between her and God was a piece of fruit. But don’t we all do the same? Taking ourselves too seriously is a way we try to become like God—and it’s foolishness. Ever since the fall, our world has been full of people who take themselves too seriously.
Except for one. Jesus, the God-man who took our sin seriously and his own dignity not seriously at all, is the only one who can never be overestimated.
Resolve to Take Jesus More Seriously
My motto for spiritual growth has become this: Because I’m taking Jesus more seriously, I’m free to take myself less seriously. The truly mature aren’t weighed down by self-importance or consumed with their image. They’re not easily offended, and they’re never too busy for “ordinary” people. Instead, they’re lighthearted, humble, and kind. They’ve already laughed at themselves, so nothing you say will faze them. This is the freedom my heart longs for this year—the freedom to stop taking myself so seriously.
My motto for spiritual growth has become this: Because I’m taking Jesus more seriously, I’m free to take myself less seriously.
What happens when I take Jesus more seriously?
I’m free to be grateful; I know every gift comes from my Father.
I’m free to be generous; I give knowing that Christ will provide what I need.
I’m free to be empathetic; I can be patient in disagreement because the truth will reign.
I’m free to forgive; I know he’s the ultimate Judge.
I’m free to rest; I can take a day off because the world is in God’s hands.
I’m free to be forgiven; I know Jesus bore my shame and calls me a friend.
I’m free to live.
As I write these words, I can feel the weight falling off my shoulders. I don’t have to pretend to be something I’m not. I don’t have to accumulate praise. I don’t have to make a name for myself. It’s the feeling of relief I get when I hear these words of Jesus:
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. (Matt. 11:28–30, NIV)
Jesus stepped into a weary and burdened world, full of people taking themselves way too seriously, and he invited them to a life of lightness, ease, and rest. How do we find this rest? By taking him seriously. By trusting he’s borne the weight of the world on his shoulders.
I’m not the solution to the world’s problems—Jesus is. And that’s something I want to take seriously this year.
Involved in Women’s Ministry? Add This to Your Discipleship Tool Kit.
We need one another. Yet we don’t always know how to develop deep relationships to help us grow in the Christian life. Younger believers benefit from the guidance and wisdom of more mature saints as their faith deepens. But too often, potential mentors lack clarity and training on how to engage in discipling those they can influence.
Whether you’re longing to find a spiritual mentor or hoping to serve as a guide for someone else, we have a FREE resource to encourage and equip you. In Growing Together: Taking Mentoring Beyond Small Talk and Prayer Requests, Melissa Kruger, TGC’s vice president of discipleship programming, offers encouraging lessons to guide conversations that promote spiritual growth in both the mentee and mentor.
