Some people view life as a beauty pageant. We are all lined up next to each other on a great stage. In front of us is a sea of judges, evaluating everything about us. They judge our looks, what we say, and our talent. At every stage of life, this evaluation goes on, until we die and the final evaluation is turned in to God. In this view of life, there can only be one winner, and we are competing with each other every day.
I Samuel 18:7-8 says, “And the women sang to one another as they celebrated, ‘Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands.’ And Saul was very angry, and this saying displeased him.” When our identity is dependent upon our successes and our position, the success of others threatens us. But when our identity is in Christ, we can celebrate the successes of other people because these successes build God’s kingdom.
