It's not about you.

Those four words offer all the freedom in the world.

Whether I want to admit it or not, at my truest nature, I want it to be about me. I want the praise, approval, and recognition. Seems like an ugly thing to admit on a blog post, but here we are. I don’t know about you, but I am a hustler. I hustle for my worth. I seek it from relationship with my husband, co-workers, fellow partners in ministry, and just about anybody that I think is worth my hustle.

Yikes.

I share this because I know I am not the only one that is hustling after things I think are important or worthy of my time and energy—and coming up oh, so empty. The world tells us all sorts of things are going to be worth our time and effort—the pursuit of a career, a home, approval, or family and friends will provide some sort of validation for us.

Reality is, even though all these things are good….they will come up short. Putting that kind of pressure on ourselves, friends and family to validate us will ultimately lead to despair. There is so much freedom that I can take hold of when I can release my people from having to meet my needs and look to Jesus to meet them instead.

Jesus provides us the sweet reminder, that He is the ultimate. He alone can provide what we are searching for. That’s why this four word reminder of it’s not about you is worth SO much. It takes the focus away from me. It’s not about what you or I bring to the table. It’s not about how special or gifted we are. It’s about Jesus, and what He has done on the cross. So the question is not, what can I be doing or what MORE can I be doing, but how can I, today, make MUCH of Jesus. How can I celebrate Him and this wonderful life that He has given through the cross. Sure there will be days that are hard and it may not be so wonderful, but He is in it, and that my sweet friends makes it wonderful.