Proverbs 27:2 Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips.
Either my parents had us memorize that verse when we were kids or they just quoted it to me enough that I memorized it unintentionally. Either way, it popped into my several weeks ago. I had just reached a running milestone (don't even remember which one now) and the only thing on my mind was posting it on Facebook, letting everyone know what I'd accomplished so that I could get some virtual pats on my internet back. Then, along came the verse and I knew that I couldn't share my milestone.
Have I posted things that I knew would solicit praise in the past? Yes. My motives have ranged from excitement (getting my hair whacked off and loving how it turned out), shock (I, the one with absolutely zero natural athletic ability or coordination, actually finished a nine week running program), a sense of accomplishment (getting our living room painted or bathroom redecorated), or accountability (getting household tasks taken care of).
Will I do it again? I have no idea, but more than likely, as I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with telling others about our accomplishments. All I know is that for right now I'm not sharing those moments publicly because I know when my motives aren't right, when I'm deliberately seeking out the praise of other people, rather than just feeling excited, shocked, accomplished, or in need of accountability, and not really giving a rip about the praise that would probably come.
Have you ever had a similar experience, a time where you realized you were telling people what you'd done, created, written, or whatever simply because you thought you were awesome (at least in regards to the topic at hand) and wanted to give others an opportunity to stroke your ego? It's pretty embarrassing when you realize that's what you're doing! At least it was for me.
2 comments:
Here's another perspective though. That perhaps we should share, with humility and grace, our accomplishments. And perhaps we should dance in joy to accomplish hard things.
To me the key here is this: am I celebrating something worthwhile I've done that improves lives and conditions here? Or trying to make myself feel better than or worthier? I cannot control others' reactions to what I post and that's the hardest thing, I think--I have zero intention of making anyone else feel less than, but I can't control what they feel either and perhaps instead of feeling less, they feel motivated? Inspired? Happy to rejoice in achievement and meaning?
Sara
http://www.stevewiens.com/2015/01/07/every-time-we-say-let-there-be/
Sara - Excellent perspective. :) I'm going to copy a few things I said on FB in response to people's responses to my post, as they're relevant to your comment. There are definitely times where it's fine to share accomplishments, but I know what my attitude was that day, that my heart was not in the right place.
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No guilt, pressure, or anything. :) Seriously. I've posted about running several times with nothing but good motives and will probably do so again. That particular day, though, I knew I was totally fishing for compliments. I need to wait until I know for sure that's not my motive anymore before I share those milestones again.
For me, I guess the question is whether or not I'd care if no one acknowledged my post about whatever milestone I'd reached. Would I mind if no one knew and/or cared? Can I just be proud of myself, regardless of what others think or if they even know? Are pats on the back from other people the determining factor in whether or not I'll do something or the only thing I care about once the thing is done?
Meanwhile, I enjoy hearing about the progress other people are making and cheering them on. :)
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Like I said in the post, I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with sharing our accomplishments. I've done it before and will probably do it again. I just know that my motives weren't right at one particular point and I want to make sure that they get right (and stay right) again. :)
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