“Do you want to do this the easy way or the hard way?” That phrase has been used so frequently that it isn’t clear who first used it.

James urges us that the path that seems easy will ultimately be much more painful for us. We all long for peace but think we can walk our own path to get there. There is only one path to true peace: humility. James reminds us, “And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace” (James 3:18). And he exhorts us, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you” (James 4:10).

Paul reminds us that all will ultimately be humbled before God, “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:9-11).

All will ultimately be humbled. But only those who humble themselves in this life will experience the peace of Christ and his exaltation of them.

So which will you choose, the path of humble wisdom or the path of jealous selfishness?

Drawing created by my daughter, Camille Beeson

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Photo by Afif Ramdhasuma on Unsplash