No such thing as a self-made man.

"Know that the LORD is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture."
- Psalm 100:3


I went to a selective high school, so I think for a time something about that made me slightly arrogant.


We were smart, we worked hard, and in the end it usually paid off and we became doctors or lawyers or actuaries. And we, and our (very Asian) parents, are proud of our achievements. 


It's not that I ever looked down upon 'normal people' or treated them differently to the 'smart folk', but inside I thought myself special for my smartness and always wanted to come first, and when I did, it made me happy.


I look back now on how fixated I was on making something of myself, and it's both sad and funny. I look to the present to people I grew up with who are now successful lawyers and doctors and actuaries, but declare themselves atheists, and it's no longer funny, but incredibly sad.


I think talent without purpose can be a very dangerous thing. If you are ridiculously smart, can think and talk your way out of anything, and have made a financially comfortable life for yourself thanks to your smartness, why would you need God? Or rather, why would you ever consider needing God or looking for something more than what you are?


When I finally got the revelation that being the best (in worldly terms) cannot infallibly save you, I think it was very freeing. Sure, I still love succeeding in things and doing well and being excellent, but now I understand why and for whom I am succeeding. It is no longer for personal glory, but for His glory - which is infinitely more worth magnifying than my own.


There is no such thing as a self-made man; only those who haven't met God yet.


I hope they get to know Him soon.




K