C.S. Lewis’s classic book “Mere Christianity” deeply influenced my thinking over the years. Its clear explanations of core Christian concepts are so memorable and helpful that they have had a lasting effect. One quote which has really stuck with me is this:

The real test of being in the presence of God is that you either forget about yourself altogether or see yourself as a small, dirty object. It is far better to forget about yourself altogether.

Lewis correctly points out that when we meet God and understand his holiness, it brings us to recognize the scope of our sin. Though none of us is as bad as we could possibly be, we all fall far short of God’s standard, which is perfection, meaning we deserve his wrath. When we clearly see this, it may lead us to be caught up in how miserable and wretched we are – seeing ourselves, as Lewis says, as a small, dirty object. Or, it can bring us to rejoice in how great God is and what he has done for us in Christ, and give up being caught up in ourselves – as Lewis says, “to forget about yourself altogether.”

John Newton was, I think, getting at a somewhat similar idea when he famously wrote this:

I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am.

Christians are far from perfect; we don’t live up to our own standards, much less God’s. Thankfully, God is working in us to make us more like him, and even more importantly, we can rejoice in the reality that we are his, by his grace – not because of anything good in us, but because of the great love with which he loved us. Now that is something to delight in – not in anything which I have done, as that will always disappoint (Luke 17:10) or leave me feeling like a small, dirty object.