“No one can be a public person, without risk to his soul, unless first he is a private person. No one can be a speaker, without risk to his soul, unless first he is fulfilled when he says nothing. …Who enjoys tranquility? The one who doesn’t take seriously either praise or lack of it from people.” Thomas a Kempis

“Blessed is that servant who does not think himself better when he is praised and exalted by men, than when he is despised and considered simple and good-for-nothing, for what a man is in the sight of God, this he is and no more.” Francis of Assisi

“Prosperity knits a man to the World. He feels that he is ‘finding his place in it’, while really it is finding its place in him.” C. S. Lewis

“There was no weight there [below the waterline in his sailboat]. In  a moment when a well-designed keel and adequate ballast might have saved the ship they were nowhere to be found.” Gordon MacDonald

“So, if you think you are standing firm,
be careful that you don’t fall!”
1 Corinthians 10:12

Moving From the Head to the Heart

• Do you need affirmation and approval to be “fulfilled?” When someone praises you, do you “take it seriously?” Assess the level of danger you are in based on your answers.
• “… what a man is in the sight of God, this he is and no more.” That’s convicting. Is the part of your life which is above the water line and seen by others, kept safe by “weight” below the water line – is there “adequate ballast?” What is your ballast?
• A “disruptive moment” (MacDonald) is certain to come. Are you preparing yourself for the inevitable? If yes, how?

Abba, help me to focus on who I am in your sight, on having weight, on being ready for crisis. May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you.