Step Down

Reading back through some older material of mine, I have been getting worked over concerning the content of my character. Unfortunately, many of us get caught in the trap of the defensive mode instead of the offensive. What I mean by this is, instead of working through the process of building our character, we spend much of our time defending why we are the way we are.

I came across a story recently where a judge that had sat on the bench for about seventeen years was put on trial for a personal matter. He shared that before this trial took place, he had become arrogant because of the position he had been in for so long. While sitting in the judge’s chair, he began to feel ‘above’ others. He had the highest seat in the courtroom and began to look at life this way. But as the trial progressed, his lawyer called him to the witness stand, and he said that as he began to testify, his perspective on his character began to change dramatically.  
He said, “stepping down just two short feet from the judge’s pedestal to the level of everyone else made me realize my perspective was way off.”


In life we have all been guilty of judgment. This leads to comparing our character, as to how it lines up, with others. If we feel that our makeup is better than that of others, we become defensive when Christ begins to work on us to be and do more.

The scripture says….He that compares himself to another is not wise.

We must grow out of this defensive mindset when it comes to our character and get to building. It has been said that this ‘body of work’ takes a lifetime to build, and one wrong decision to destroy. Often times, playing not to lose (defensive mode) will cause you to do just that.

Building character is not about playing it safe. It is about humility. It is realizing that sometimes the blueprint needs to be adjusted…and we adjust it. We will get to a point where we spend no more time trying to defend the why…because we are too busy building.

Climb down off the pedestal and stop attempting to fill a role that is meant for only ONE. If you spend all of your time in the chair of a judge, then there is no possible way for you to look UP where your help comes from.

Don’t delay…let’s get to building.