To this John replied, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must become greater; I must become less.” John 3:27-30

Perhaps the crux of the Christian life is encapsulated in verse 30. How would our lives on Earth change if we lived out that one verse? It’s at this point that the finger pointing ceases and the introspection begins.

What specifically am I doing to decrease and to make Him increase? I don’t see it as a “let go and let God” moment, because while that’s a nice cliche, it doesn’t mean a lot. Rather, it a healthy realization that I don’t have all the answers or the money or the power or the intellectual capabilities to fix the world’s problems. And there are many.

But what I do have, I have in abundance, the power of the Holy Spirit living through me. What that means is that I am never alone (Psalm 139), and am able to overcome anything that comes my way (1 Corinthians 10:13). When we can accept that He is ever present (Ephesians 1:13-14). The Holy Spirit gives us hope (Galatians 5:5), the Spirit of God motivates us to avoid sin (1 Corinthians 6:19), and the Spirit of God directs us (Romans 8:12-14).

John the Baptist stated our life mission succinctly: He must increase; I must decrease.

It truly is a different way of thinking.