How We Disqualify Ourselves
JUNE 26, 2020
By Rosella Shishido, Director of Communications
The Great Divorce by Christian theologian C.S. Lewis is one of my favorite fiction books. So much so that I (along with co-worker Kathy Makuakane) recommended to our life group that we do a study on it. No, the book is not about the dissolution of a couple’s marriage, but rather the separation of heaven and hell. (What??? Read my brief explanation at the end of this devotional.)*
I don’t find it easy reading C.S. Lewis books, The Great Divorce included. Most of the time I have to read each page twice before I can fully understand what’s going on (lol). But what drew me into the story was a curious phrase that the previous owner of the book had scribbled on the margins of one of the first few pages of Chapter 1.
The chapter opens with people standing in line at a bus stop in Grey Town (Hell) waiting for the bus to Heaven (remember now, this is fiction). It started as a long line, but as time passed, some of those in line did things that made them lose their place. Yes, they intended to board the bus but ended up not doing so, either because they changed their minds or something happened that prompted them to say no to the opportunity to go to Heaven.
And that’s where the previous book owner wrote on the margins of the page: “how we disqualify ourselves.”
That made me think of the many times I’ve disqualified myself from opportunities the Lord gives me to help someone, or to step out in faith, or to be bold, or to take better care of myself. By disqualifying myself, I am, in effect, saying no to God.
I disqualified myself when ....
Given an opportunity to serve Him, I said, “But I’m not qualified to do that.”
Given an opportunity to help someone, I said, “But it’s inconvenient right now.”
Given an opportunity to step out in faith, I said, “But what if I didn’t hear You right, Lord.”
Given an opportunity to stand up for something, I said, “But what if I fail?”
Given the blessing to sleep, I said, “But I have to finish this thing first.”
That last point is what I struggle with the most. Like most Americans today, I have the very bad habit of not getting enough sleep. The Harvard Medical School reports that “one in five Americans sleeps less than six hours a night, a trend that could have serious personal health consequences.”
Getting enough sleep is a way to honor God with my body. To deny myself of sleep is to disqualify myself from being able to serve God in my best capacity. The simple act of sleeping should validate my trust in God as my Provider, and so why do I keep depriving myself of sleep? Perhaps it’s a reflection of my lack of trust in God.
“Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat––for He grants sleep to those He loves.” (Psalm 127:1-2)
Sleep is, then, a gift from God we receive daily. And by staying up later than we should, we not only disqualify ourselves, we refuse a generous gift from God Himself.
Prayer: Father, I’m sorry for the many times I’ve disqualified myself from the opportunities You give me to serve You, help others, and take better care of myself. I want to make wise decisions by saying yes to what You’re asking me to do, instead of looking for reasons why I can’t do it. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.
*The Great Divorce is in response to another book written in 1793 called The Marriage of Heaven and Hell by William Blake, who claimed that there actually is no separation between good (heaven) and evil (hell), and that it’s necessary to have both. Like mixing black and white resulting in the color grey. But C.S. Lewis contends that it can’t be so. There’s no diminishing the line between good and evil. One cannot have both Heaven and Hell. It’s either one or the other, thus the great divorce.
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