It’s difficult to stand at the base of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai (the tallest building in the world) – looking up toward its top reaching 2,717 feet into the sky – and not feel a sense of awe. Buildings such as this one testify to what humanity can achieve. And they also condemn us for how little we can achieve. All it takes is seeing a bird flying high above these structures to humble our thinking.

The structures we build are massive in our eyes, but they are tiny in God’s. That is why He had to come down to see the tower in Babel. Our good works may earn other’s respect, but they are small in God’s eyes (Isaiah 64:6). The problem is that we use the wrong standard, which leads to the wrong definition of “greatness.” We are not our own measure – God is. This is what God would teach the people of Babel and what He teaches us.

• What areas in your life do you tend to evaluate by the wrong standards?
• How would you define greatness? How is that different from the way God defines it?