Sky High Ego

Date: Thursday, January 8, 2026

Let’s be honest, we are fundamentally obsessed with making a name for ourselves. Genesis 11 shows us this original urge at a place called Babel where humanity tried to hack their way into the heavens with brick and mortar. It’s the ultimate picture of prideful ambition. We still build modern towers of ego today: our careers, our social media profiles, our financial portfolios, all the while thinking we can somehow reach the top and call the shots. We think if we just stack up enough achievements, we’ll finally be secure. God laughs with mild indignation, looking down to see what all the fuss is about. It’s a divine “talk to the hand” at our self-importance. God isn’t threatened by our tech; He’s saddened by our disconnection from Him, the Source.

Contrast Babel with the grit and glory of Psalm 8. While the people of Babel are frantically trying to storm the gates of heaven, the Psalmist looks at the night sky and realizes we are tiny, yet inexplicably chosen. The hard truth here is that we find our true identity not in what we build, but in who built us. In the grand narrative of Scripture, Babel is the anti-Pentecost. It’s where human pride fractures the world into a thousand competing voices. It’s a wound that Jesus ultimately heals by bringing the nations back together into a single Kingdom. We are cosmic dust, yes, but we are cosmic dust that has been crowned with glory and honor by the King of the Universe.

Maybe we should stop trying to build monuments to our own ego and start marveling at the fact that the Creator of the stars actually knows each of our names. Our value isn’t in our output; it’s in our origin. We’re only 11 chapters since the beginning that started it all. Have we already forgotten where we came from and where we’re going?!

Devotional Prompts:

What tower are you constructing in your life that is more about your name than God’s glory?
How does the vastness of the universe (Psalm 8) change the way you view your daily anxieties?
In what ways do you see modern Babel culture creating division instead of community today?
If you stopped building for a day, how would you define your worth?

Prayer: Lord, forgive us for trying to build empires out of dust. Remind us today that our value isn’t found in our achievements, but in Your fingerprints on our lives. Keep our eyes on the stars and our hearts in Your hands, resting in the dignity You’ve already given us. Amen.