discoruagement, ministry, My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers, pride, self-love, self-pity

Discouragement: Disillusioned Self-love~ Oswald Chambers

Discouragement is disillusioned self-love, and self-love may be love for my devotion to Jesus–not my love for Jesus Himself (My Utmost for His Highest).

Photo By Kim Andrist

Oswald never tip-toed around the hard stuff. He always called it as he saw it. When I read this sentence above, the words went straight to my human heart.

Me? Self-love? Love for my devotion to Jesus rather than love for Jesus Himself? Um….maybe.

Just a few weeks ago I found myself very discouraged about my writing/speaking career and the smallness of it. I was ready to throw in the towel. Give up. Succumb to the truth that I’m not Beth Moore and never will be.

Can I just tell you… that place of “giving up” is always such a good place to be because it never fails: when I give up then God can and will work. And discouraged places always give me time to reflect on my motives and make a heart change.

I wallowed for a couple of days in my discouragement and self-pity. And then something inside gave me new vision and perspective. Discouragement sent me back to Jesus. Back to the reason why I write. Back to the God and the calling I can’t deny. God hasn’t called me to be a BIG somebody. He’s called me to follow Him. Whatever that looks like. He doesn’t use the same scales to measure success as we do in this world.

I once heard a great quote, “Some people feel they have to say something, but some have something to say.” I desire to always be of the latter group. I pray the words in these posts make a difference; I’m not writing just to write or speaking just to speak, but I’m persuaded to do so because of the weight of the message.

Simply. Jesus loves you.

Take time this week for self-inventory. Ask yourself, “Am I in love with Jesus or my devotion to Jesus?”  It’s a comfortable place for some of us because we’ve lived it for so long.

Much grace,
andy

Search me O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there be any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalm 139:24).

4 Comments

  1. Gary Barton

    Who would have thought that I would stumble across this answer to my prayers by reading my Oswald Chambers daily devotional hahaha God is mysterious and wonderful and awesome thank you Andy for this post on disillusioned self-love

    1. Hi Gary! I love how God works. What a blessing to be part of an answer to your prayer with Oswald. :) Blessings!

  2. Thank you Lorraine! What a blessing for you to find this old post and comment on it. It’s funny how you need to hear your own words over and over again. Thank you for your encouragement! Blessings!

  3. Lorraine Breaux

    Grace to you and peace….I have been reading Oswald Chambers for years. Morning after morning I find a quiet place and seek God’s face. My Utmost For His Highest always touches a sensitive place in my heart. If something truly grips me, I cry. If I do not understand a certain something, I usually reread until I do. The last line of 18 August had me rereading to the point of further search. I googled disenchanted self- love and God led me to your site. Thank you for your faithfulness and devotion to the Most high God!!! I pray you will continue to write and be about the Father’s business. Be careful not to compare yourself to another , as you are the only one who can be you. That’s a beautiful thing 💝
    Blessings in abundance to you…love and hugs….Rain

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