So often we forget that our life in Christ is about Jesus not us. We forget that he is the head of the church and we are the body. Usually when you take a peek in the mirror you check out your head. You should see Jesus when you look as should others, but it is very easy to make our journey about exalting ourselves instead of Jesus. As Peter found out as soon as you take your eyes off of Jesus you sink. It is very easy to make our plans so that we benefit from them. The sooner we realize it is not about us the better our lives will be in Christ. We can see the emphasis on God in Ezra 8:21 There, by the Ahava Canal, I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions. 22 I was ashamed to ask the king for soldiers and horsemen to protect us from enemies on the road, because we had told the king, “The gracious hand of our God is on everyone who looks to him, but his great anger is against all who forsake him.” 23 So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer.” They did not want to make it about the king’s protection but God’s protection. This journey was about God not man. In the end, “The hand of our God was on us, and he protected us from enemies and bandits along the way. So we arrived in Jerusalem, where we rested three days.” Only God would receive the glory.

We also see this in 1 Kings 8: 58 “May he turn our hearts to him, to walk in obedience to him and keep the commands, decrees and laws he gave our ancestors. 59 And may these words of mine, which I have prayed before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, that he may uphold the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel according to each day’s need, 60 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other.”

When we exalt ourselves others will know about us but when we exalt the name of the Lord, all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other. We need to get our eyes off ourselves and onto Jesus Christ so that all will “know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel.” (2 Kings 5)