| Ego - article by Joel Hempel Recently, I was reminded of a story I told when we returned to the church where we served in Cincinnati for their twenty-fifth anniversary. As an inner-city church, many worshippers got me accustomed to hearing a periodic “Amen!” while I preached. So, when I returned, I told them about the responses I received in the retirement community chapel. There, too, I received expressions in response to my preaching. However, with many nursing home residents in attendance, the responses were more like polite nods – or, more accurately, various expressions of nodding off! For example, there was the “this sermon is not interesting enough to keep me awake, so I’m going to sleep” nod. Then, there was the “Yes nod.” This included the slight nod of the head, which was caught right before the chin hit the chest, then quickly raised until seconds later when the partial nod was repeated. Finally, there was what I called the polite non-nod: “I don’t want to offend the preacher, and since I can’t stay awake, I’ll just leave.” It took a couple of years, but the residents helped me grow out of my ego insecurities. You can’t have a fragile ego when you preach or teach Bible class in a nursing home. Ego in Latin means I. It is how we perceive ourselves and distinguish ourselves from others. A person with a fragile ego or weak self-image can be easily hurt and unable to fully embrace who they are as God’s child. People with an exaggerated ego or prideful self-image can think too highly of themselves,1 get in the way of others growing into their God-given capacity, and not recognize the complete person God created them to be. Neither attribute is what God wants for us. What is the God-blessed, healthy “I” he invites us to embrace? A person who walks humbly with God.2 A humble person is neither arrogant nor self-debasing. A humble person recognizes their strengths and limitations and seeks to live within them. If you are not good at math, there is no shame in admitting it. Our friend Vern Gunderman admitted he was a terrible speller and jokingly asserted there had to be more than one acceptable way to spell a word. A humble Christian recognizes and embraces their place in the Body of Christ.3 We each have a purpose and function and are part of a healthy, interdependent spiritual system called the Kingdom of God – his Church.4 You may not be able to lead, but if you easily laugh, you can bring joy to others. If you can’t preach, you can pray. If you can’t evangelize, you may be a gifted encourager. If you can’t build, perhaps you could bake and sweeten the lives of many. We are all gifted differently – often with multiple gifts - so we can each serve Christ faithfully. Of course, our gifts are needed to care for our families and make a living. But God also needs us to invest our gifts and competencies for building up and strengthening his Church.5 If you are unable to identify how you can help build and strengthen the Body of Christ, please reach out to a deacon. We would love to use our gifts to serve you. 1. Romans 12:3 2. Micah 6:8 3. 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 4. Ephesians 4:4-16; Romans 12:4-8 5. Ephesians 4:1-12; 1 Corinthians 12; 1 Peter 4:10-11 | 
