No. 63. The Tale of Me-me and the Mark.
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Be Humble. (Have a modest opinion of yourself.)
Matthew 23:12; Luke 14:8-11, 18:14, 22:26; John 13:16.
The man who took the last place at the table and was asked to move up hit this Mark; the one who took the first place and was asked to move down, missed.
The Tale
Once upon a time in the mind of Evangeline there was an ego that always stood straight to appear tall even though she was short and stocky. Its name, of course, was Me-me. Me-me thought that by standing straight and always trying to look its best, people would like it. Me-me especially wanted to befriend the Mark because the Mark was so regal and important.
Me-me was in a very sad predicament though because no one wanted to be friends with it no matter how straight it stood or how nicely it combed its hair. Me-me would dance and sing, and sometimes, just to be noticed, Me-me would sit on the Bishop’s throne and smile the biggest and toothiest smile possible. “After-all,” thought Me-me, “I am as handsome as the Bishop. Here, I will be noticed and people will come to me and kiss my hand.”
Yet, deep in its vacuous heart, the well-dressed ego knew that the Mark was its secret enemy. Neither Me-me nor the Mark could understand what made the other tick. Me-me wasn’t even sure why her ego wanted its enemy to like it, except for the conquest of it all.
The Mark didn’t care who liked it and did nothing to get attention. The Mark was a confident sort who quietly went about its business of being bright and pure. Ironically, some people tried hard to be like the Mark, who didn’t care, and no one tried to be exactly like Me-me who cared a lot. This made Me-me mad because it meant that the Mark got attention it didn’t even want, whereas Me-me yearned for a glimmer of worship.
Now, do you want to laugh? This tale has no ending; it just keeps chasing itself.
Me-me always tries to take the Mark’s honor, and never grabs it, and the Mark never changes.
If you find yourself chasing this tale today, please stop and pet poor Me-me.