Maybe Your Life Isn't as Important as You Think

by Brother Carlton 
09/23/26
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I’ve come to realize something that may sound strange in a world obsessed with self-importance:

My life is not that important.

Not really.

I have probably placed more importance upon myself than I should have. And perhaps you have too.

Think about it. Before I entered this world, the earth was turning. People were getting married, raising families, building businesses, fighting wars, pursuing dreams, growing old, and dying.

Then I arrived.

And the world kept turning.

Reminds me of that soap opera my great-grandmother used to watch "As the World Turns"

No faster. No slower.

And someday, when I am gone, the world will continue turning without me.

The same is true for you.

That doesn’t mean our lives have no value. They certainly do. But perhaps we have confused value with importance.

Most of us will not dramatically change the course of human history. Individually, our influence is relatively small. Of course, multiplied by millions of people, individual choices can change families, communities, nations, and eventually the course of history.

But there is something humbling about realizing that the universe does not revolve around any one of us.

The apostle Paul wrote:

“For I say...to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think.”
Romans 12:3

Yet isn’t that exactly what our culture encourages us to do?

The Age of Self

I remember the late Robert Schuller famously emphasizing self-esteem and even connecting humanity’s fundamental problem with a lack of it.

I see the problem differently.

Perhaps our greater problem is that we esteem ourselves too much.

Just look at our vocabulary:

Self-esteem.
Self-confidence.
Self-importance.
Self-recognition.
Self-expression.
Self-fulfillment.
Self-actualization.
Self-promotion.

Self is everywhere.

And when self becomes the center of life, everyone else gradually becomes secondary.

Paul described something similar when he wrote of Timothy:

“For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s.”
Philippians 2:21

Elsewhere he tells believers:

“Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.”
Philippians 2:4

There is nothing wrong with properly caring for ourselves.

We eat because our bodies need nourishment. We put clothes on our backs. We seek shelter. We protect ourselves from danger. There is a natural and proper instinct for self-preservation.

Scripture recognizes this. Paul writes that “no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it” (Ephesians 5:29).

So the answer is not self-hatred.

The answer is getting self into its proper place.

There Is Someone Greater Than You

Jesus gave us the proper order:

“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind...Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”
Matthew 22:37, 39

Notice what comes first.

God.

Then our neighbor.

And “as thyself” assumes that we already possess a natural concern for our own welfare.

But there is Someone infinitely more important than you or me: the God who made us.

David said:

“I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
Psalm 139:14

And Psalm 100 reminds us:

“Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.”

There is something wonderfully liberating about that truth.

I don't have to be the center of the universe.

I don't have to spend my life trying to convince everyone that I am important.

I don't have to build a monument to myself.

My greatest purpose is not to make much of myself.

It is to make much of God.

Jesus Christ demonstrated the exact opposite of the self-centered spirit that dominates our age. He humbled Himself. He served. He sacrificed. He gave His life for others.

And perhaps our world would look very different if more of us stopped asking,

“What can I get?”

and began asking,

“Whom can I serve?”

If we thought less about glorifying ourselves and more about glorifying God...

If we loved God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength...

If we genuinely loved our neighbors as ourselves...

we might discover something remarkable:

Our lives become most significant when we stop trying to make ourselves significant.

The world does not revolve around you.

It does not revolve around me.

Hopefully too, it doesn't revolve around some pastor.

That is how personality cults develop.

It revolves around the purposes of the One who made us.

And bringing glory to Him may be the most important thing any of us will ever do.

Brother Carlton is a former U.S. Marine, author, podcast host, and speaker with a passion for proclaiming biblical truth and encouraging Christians to pursue the lasting riches found in Jesus Christ.

 He is the author of Digging for Spiritual Treasure: Meditations From My Hollywood Apartment and host of The Brother Carlton Show, available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

 Through his writing, podcasting, and speaking ministry, Brother Carlton addresses faith, culture, Christian living, and biblical discernment, with a clear call to seek the eternal treasures of God’s Word rather than the fleeting promises of the world.

 Drawing upon both biblical truth and lessons learned through a lifetime of varied experiences, he brings a practical and personal perspective to his messages.

 Brother Carlton is also available for speaking engagements, bringing Scripture-centered messages designed to challenge, encourage, and strengthen audiences in their walk with Christ.