Today I had my annual review at work. I really dislike those things. I know they have to be done but it doesn’t make me get a warm fuzzy about them. Something about subjecting yourself to listening to someone else’s opinion of you and what you do just doesn’t seem fun.
My review went okay. There were a lot of positive comments but then there were the “you need to work on these: items. There weren’t any real surprises there. He’d told me these a few months ago when I was a disenfranchised employee. I know what I need to work on. Question is, will I do it?
I started thinking about how this relates to God. The Holy Spirit serves as our “reviewer”. When we start down the wrong track, the Holy Spirit gently reminds of us that this is not what we should do.
“Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.” (1 John 3:24, NIV)
We have a chance to correct it right away. In my review last year there were a few surprises. I had no idea some things I did were a problem. No one told me, so I never had the chance to correct the behavior. Thank goodness God has given us the Holy Spirit to steer us toward the right behavior right away. We don’t have to wait until eternity to learn we were on the wrong track!
In two weeks we set goals for next year. I’m to spend some time thinking about what those should be. Well I guess they should be the things he pointed out that need improvement. Are those things fun for me to work on? Nope. Will I work on them? Yes. In the same way, God has given us His Word by which we can gauge our actions. We don’t need to wait a whole year to know how we are doing, we can read His Word everyday and do a quick comparison. I like James and Proverbs for some good soul searching.
Take for instance James 1:19-20. Check your behavior against this: “My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry..” Ummm, yeah. I fail on at least one of these all the time. I’m working on it though!
What about Proverbs 17:1: “Better a dry crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting, with strife.” Ouch! I better stop yelling at the kids. They better quit arguing with each other.
Whether it’s a review on your job or the review of the Holy Spirit and God’s Holy Word, let’s be open to correction. We should aspire to be better, more holy people. After all God said " I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy." (Leviticus 11:44, NIV)
If we pursue holiness, reviewing ourselves versus the godly attributes in the bible will not inspire fear but anticipation of how far God has brought us in that area.
4 comments:
WOW...a lot to think about here...in a way I think it would be nice if I could sit down and hear God's thoughts in audible words but then...it might be a big ouch. Maybe I need to think about this practice of God reviewing me in my quiet times...great thoughts to think about here!
In his Graces~Pamela
~What about Proverbs 17:1: “Better a dry crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting, with strife.” Ouch! I better stop yelling at the kids. They better quit arguing with each other.~
LOL!:) And "Ouch!" here too. :)
I am definitely a work in progress.
I love all of these thoughts that you shared. I was having these same thoughts last night as I read my devotionals. I have so much that needs work on.
Like your job, I need to work on setting goals.
I like the old saying, "If you don't have a target to aim for, you'll never hit anything." (Or something like that.) :)
I need to make a target, and then try to hit it.
Thanks for these encouraging words; I needed them today.
God Bless,
Amy:)
hey lady...I'd love a copy of that "sin sheet" you mentioned on my blog...I think I'm needing some time of deep confession...digging around for those sins hidden in my heart. Have you heard of a book called "Returning to Holiness" It's a really good prayer guide, too.
You have some powerful posts lately, thanks for sharing your heart, it's an encouragement to all of us. I try to remember that God has placed people in my life to help guide me, even though correction is so hard to take, especially at work. You seem like you are on a faithful track.
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