My Spiritual CV Isn't Up To Scratch

You may have seen them – blogs written by the mum with 5 kids, who’s writing a book, doing a Masters and runs a website – oh and she home-schools her kids!

Or the guy whose Twitter feed describes him as a pastor, musician, blogger, writer, husband, father of 3, international speaker…and he still tweets 30 times a day!

When online I catch myself -

Comparing me to him. My wife to her.

And I feel inferior. Because both I and my wife are, I guess, ordinary.

I’m 6 weeks into being off work with a broken back – a great time to do some study, read books…grow my spiritual CV – and yet I’ve felt too lousy to do anything at all.

And I’m aware again that my spiritual CV seems so inadequate.

Do you ever feel like that?

How should we respond when we do?

 

Relax – it’s ok to have a great spiritual CV

I need to remind myself that there is nothing intrinsically wrong with having a great spiritual CV. Look at the Apostle Paul and how God used his background! If you’ve got the gifts, I reckon go for it! I am glad there are high capacity, clever Christians with well-researched blogs (unlike this one!) and who lead big ministries.

Remember – my CV isn’t a measure of my godliness

I am so impressed when people have all these degrees and qualifications, or when they’ve ministered somewhere for 40+ years. But it doesn’t mean they’re more godly. In fact, it means they are more at risk of being the older brother.

Just last week a good friend of mine had a big accident that meant he might not walk again (yes, like me he fell off his bike!). He would say his spiritual CV was in tatters – for months he has been miles from God.

But God is healing him.

Unexpectedly he can walk.

And he feels closer to Jesus than ever!

The work of grace in his life may have a greater impact on his kids than 18 months of consistently being a great dad.

 

Not that this is a pattern to follow, but it shows God’s outrageous grace to sinful people; God’s throwing a party for him.

And you know my natural reaction?

‘Hey God. I’ve been trying to be faithful here. I’m working hard. My CV is growing. Now look, this guy is closer to you than I am. He doesn’t deserve it!’

I guess I need to remember that God measures things differently.

I want to rejoice when God brings the lost son home

For others, their CV just isn’t as impressive-sounding. My wife deals with ones and twos. She is faithful to what God has given her to do. It doesn’t write up great on a twitter feed or description of herself. Only God knows her faithfulness to him. It’s not for me or another to judge.

 

 

Relief - God uses those with holes in their CVs

Most of the Godly people I meet don't have impressive CVs. In fact the bible is full of such characters like Peter, Moses and Abraham – it’s not an excuse, but the reality.

I know a guy with no qualifications to his name. He’s in his 70s. He would have a fairly blank resumé as we know it if he were to write a blog or list his credentials.

 

He boasts quite simply that he knows Jesus.

 

 

How I want to be like that. Even if I have stuff on my spiritual CV, I hope that I can be faithful to what God says.

'But let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me’

Jeremiah 9:24

I don’t want to fall into the trap of measuring my success or godliness by the length or depth of my spiritual CV. And so if my spiritual CV isn’t up to scratch I don’t have to worry.

 

Just trust Him.

 

John Greenall is a Paediatrician and Head of….

Oh stuff it...

John Greenall wants to boast that he knows Christ

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