Caleb Reed: There was a statement that Dr.

Jim made a number of years ago.

I think he repeated it again at the Thee Generation Youth Summit, this recent one.

But it’s a statement that stuck with me for quite a while, but these recent days has meant even more.

I graduated from seminary back in May of this year, and so I’ve been just working a normal 40-hour-a-week job doing painting, actually.

It’s been a little bit different for me. and I’ve painted before, but I maybe wouldn’t call myself a professional just yet.

So I’m learning a lot.

This statement as I’ve been working, painting, has come to my mind many times.

And the statement was, and I’m not going to get it word for word, but the gist of it, what Dr.

Jim said was, why pretend to be something you’re not?

Why not just admit who you really are instead of trying to pretend you’re something you’re really not when you’re really not who you really are?

He has a classic way of saying what seems complicated but really is simple.

And the essence of it is this.

If you’re not something, why are you pretending to be that something?

So I mentioned that I’ve been painting.

Well, you know, some days are good days.

I cut a straight line, I roll a really nice line.

And other days, not so much.

Go a little too fast, a little too careless.

Bump things you shouldn’t, knock something over that you wish you hadn’t, or just spill paint.

And some days, it just doesn’t go the way you want it to be.

And yet, this old flesh of mine really wants to pretend that I’m a professional painter, that I just know what I’m doing and that I could never make a mistake.

And you know, this statement that Dr.

Jim has made has come to my attention many times because young people just like you, you know, sometimes I get corrected or I get challenged to do something differently.

And I don’t often like that.

The other night I was reading 1 Peter 1 with my wife and came across verse 24.

The Bible says, For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass.

The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away.

But the word of the Lord endureth forever.

You know, young people, I think all of us would like to appear smarter, more handsome, more pretty, more adept at their skills, more proficient, better GPA, better pay, whatever it may be.

There’s always something that we seem to be striving for.

And whenever we’re exposed for being what we’re not, what we want to be, oftentimes it hurts.

But as Dr.

Jim made that statement, it’s resonated with me because I began to realize, why am I fighting to be something that I’m not?

Why don’t I just admit who I really am and just enjoy it?

You know, the scripture here that I just read says, the flesh is grass, the glory of man is the flower of grass, and all of that is going to someday wither and fall away.

So why do I keep trying to put on a facade?

You know, my day goes so much better when I just admit, hey, I’m not a professional painter just yet.

Hey, you know what?

I didn’t get an A in that class.

You know what?

Sometimes I have character weaknesses.

You know what?

Sometimes I still need to grow.

And just admitting where I am, it saved me so much heartache when I get corrected on the job.

Oh, Caleb, why’d you do that?

Instead of trying to give an excuse, snap back so I can try to make sure that my reputation is intact in my eyes at least, why not just admit, yeah, I messed up.

Yeah, I shouldn’t have done that.

Hey, I need to grow.

Can you show me?

If I need to grow in something, why don’t I get the training?

Why don’t I get the help?

You know, the scripture in Proverbs talks about the foolish man being someone who hates correction, and a wise man is the one who encourages the correction, or someone who embraces the correction.

It’s not really about being someone genius.

It’s just being about someone who’s willing to admit who they really are and not try to put on a facade for who they really aren’t.

It’s really simple. and you know I have found this has changed my day it’s changed my work week it’s changed my relationship with my wife it’s even changed my relationship with the Lord you know how many times I can come to the Lord in my devotions and just be humble with him and not try to pretend I’m something that I’m not and just say Lord I I messed up here or or Lord I’m I’m struggling to stay awake but I really want to meet with you or or Lord I I failed here but I want to do better here or Lord, I need to grow.

Lord, I’m trying my best.

Lord, would you show yourself?

Would you reveal yourself?

It’s amazing.

My devotions come alive when I’m just humble and honest and not try to give excuses to the Lord why I disobeyed or why I haven’t been spending more time with him and just be honest and say, okay, Lord, here’s where I’m at.

Here’s what I’ve done.

And I want to change and I want to grow.

Because my flesh and the glory of my being, my character, of what I might fight for, someday it’s going to fade away.

Someday it fades away within 24 hours.

But certainly at the end of time, everything I did in the flesh, every action or response that I yelled at someone or got angry or maybe didn’t say anything, just seethed inside because I was trying to prove something that I really wasn’t, all of those will someday be revealed.

And how much time was wasted when I was trying to live a life of someone I really wasn’t?

There’s a devotional book that I’ve read a number of years ago by Roy Hessian, and he has a story in there, an illustration of the difference between a snake and a worm.

And he asks the question, are you a snake who snaps at and bites at and tries to attack anything that approaches him?

Or are you willing to just be a worm?

As scriptures say in Psalm 22, for I am a worm and no man.

Are you willing to just be a worm?

Someone who has no defense, no offense.

Just someone who is willing to be honest with who they are and not try to pretend that they’re not something they’re not.

So maybe this week, some of the stress, some of the frustration that you felt because you’re trying to keep up your image, you can just release it to the Lord and just be willing to be who you really are.

Be honest with who you are.

Tell people who you are and not try to be something you’re not.

Embrace correction and enjoy it.