Moses said to the Lord, "O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant, I am slow of speech and tongue." Exodus 4:10
In the book, Pegues describes self-deprication as "when you think or speak of yourself as being of little or no worth and thereby minimize the value of what you 'bring to the table' or have to offer...often disquised as humility'". It is important for us to remember that we are creations of God, and He doesn't make mistakes! Ephesians 2:10 tells us we are God's masterpieces.
The word used in Ephesians is poiēma which simply means a work of God. It is only used one other time in the Bible and that is in Romans 1:20 when talking about creation. He saved the best of creation for last. Now don't let it go to your head, but don't forget that God knows what He is doing either.
Self-deprecation is full of "I" statements, very self-focused. "I am not good enough", "I am to fat", "I don't speak well enough" etc. Unlike humility, self-deprecation is often used to avoid responsibility, and therein lies the problem! When we begin to use our weaknesses to avoid doing the work of the Lord we have wandered over that line between self-deprecation and humility. Look at how God responded to Moses talk:
"Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say" (Exodus 4:11-12).
God knows us intimately (Psalm 139:1-5), we do not need to tell him of where we fall short. But remember what we said yesterday, He delights in using the weak so that He can receive the glory that is rightfully His. Do not allow your thoughts to prevent you from stepping up when He calls you to His side.
Lord, help us to recognize our weaknesses and keep us from pride, but also help us not to swing the pedulum to far the other way towards self-deprecation. Help us to see ourselves as You do and to recognize that we truly can do all things through You. In Jesus name, amen.
The word used in Ephesians is poiēma which simply means a work of God. It is only used one other time in the Bible and that is in Romans 1:20 when talking about creation. He saved the best of creation for last. Now don't let it go to your head, but don't forget that God knows what He is doing either.
Self-deprecation is full of "I" statements, very self-focused. "I am not good enough", "I am to fat", "I don't speak well enough" etc. Unlike humility, self-deprecation is often used to avoid responsibility, and therein lies the problem! When we begin to use our weaknesses to avoid doing the work of the Lord we have wandered over that line between self-deprecation and humility. Look at how God responded to Moses talk:
"Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say" (Exodus 4:11-12).
God knows us intimately (Psalm 139:1-5), we do not need to tell him of where we fall short. But remember what we said yesterday, He delights in using the weak so that He can receive the glory that is rightfully His. Do not allow your thoughts to prevent you from stepping up when He calls you to His side.
Lord, help us to recognize our weaknesses and keep us from pride, but also help us not to swing the pedulum to far the other way towards self-deprecation. Help us to see ourselves as You do and to recognize that we truly can do all things through You. In Jesus name, amen.
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