You Are Better

“But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,  that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” Philippians 3:7-11

“Better”

All the money that the world could hold
Mountains made of solid gold
Riches that could buy my dreams
You are better than all these things

The prettiest face to turn their eyes

Beauty that could hypnotize
The open doors that looks may bring
You are better than all these things

Your love is better than life

You are the well that won't run dry 

I have tasted and I have seen

Oh, You are better than all these things

Power that could shake the moon

Most important one in every room
Status matched by only kings
You are better than all these things

Your love is better than life

You are the well that won't run dry
I have tasted and I have seen
You are better than all these things

Being liked and loved by everyone

Approval that outshines the sun

Cheered by all who think of me

You are better than all these things

You are better than all these things

You are better

Oh, you’re better
I have tasted and I have seen
You are better than all these things

Your love is better than life

You are the well that never runs dry
I have tasted and I have seen
You are better than all these things

You are better than all these things

When I first heard this song by Pat Barrett I was completely captivated by the lyrics of the chorus. Your love is better than life (Psalm 63:3), You are the well that won’t run dry (John 4:14); I have tasted and I have seen (Psalm 34:8); You are better than all these things (Philippians 3:7-8). It was a beautiful declaration of love for the Lord.

But as I dug deeper into the verses I began to see so much of myself and how I have pursued so many other things before being in full pursuit of Christ. Matthew 6:33 reminds us that we are to seek first His Kingdom, but for many of us, that is often not our first pursuit. We have jobs that we ambitiously work at for more money thinking that it will help us buy our dreams. We spend endless hours at the gym working toward a certain look that we believe will help us turn heads. We try harder and harder to climb the proverbial ladder to gain an importance that will help us reach our goals. We do whatever it takes to gain others’ approval, even if it means sacrificing relationships. We live day in and day out to make our name great or to get as many “likes” as we can on social media. We pursue and pursue and pursue but it is all worthless compared to knowing and tasting and imitating Christ every day. We can be the richest, most powerful person in our workplace but if we are not humble servant-leaders, we are nothing. We can have the leanest and strongest body or the prettiest face but if we are not kind hearted and compassionate, we are nothing. We can be the most popular person in our social circle and have the most followers on Instagram but if we are not genuine and Christ-like in our words and actions, we are nothing. 

I love what Paul says in Philippians 3, “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord…” Here he was, a murderer, and no doubt very highly esteemed in his day. He was brave, he was powerful, he was prestigious and he says that all of what he had gained in his life was rubbish compared to knowing Christ. Everything that he had worked toward building in order to make his own name great was worthless compared to the faith that he now has in Christ. 

Oh, dear friends, let us set aside our own agendas, our own desires and our own ladders in order to really KNOW Christ and be found in Him. Let us feast every day at His table and taste His goodness. Let us declare with boldness, “You, Lord, are better than ALL these things!”




Page Details

I started my page by blending together some distress oxides in Worn Lipstick, Picked Raspberry, Spiced Marmalade and Fossilized Amber. I then used one of my favorite sets, Scribble Flowers, to add a fun flower border to the page along with my Illustrated Faith pen to draw the remaining border. The words are stamped with a mix of Teeny Alpha and With Love Alpha. I wrote the lyrics to “Better” in the bottom corner to remind me that Jesus, truly is, better than ALL these things. 

Have a great weekend, friends!
Jennifer