Forget Yourself Long Enough To Lend A Helping Hand

Forget Yourself Long Enough To Lend A Helping Hand

Philippians 2:3-4 “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.”

I had no idea this verse was in the Bible, yet it could be the answer to so many of our problems. Imagine what the world would be like if we did nothing from selfishness or empty conceit. Imagine if we all regarded one another as more important than ourselves. Imagine if we weren’t just looking out for our own best interests but those of others as well. I run into many people these days who clearly regard themselves as more important than those around them. You can tell in their voice when they talk to you that they are sure you do not know what you are talking about. You can tell by their actions they do not feel you are more important than they are.

Here is the verse above in the Message translation. Philippians 2:3-4 “Don’t push your way to the front; don’t sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside and help others get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.” How many of us are living like this? How many of us put aside what we want to help others get ahead? I love where it says, forget about yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand. I wish we could all lend a helping hand a bit more.  What a better world we would live in if we did. I am not saying people aren’t doing this. I have seen people lending a helping hand. However, I have also seen far more people walk right by without stopping. I have seen people go out of their way to be mean to those less fortunate they are.

I can see extremes in two different ways. First, the person who thinks they are more important than everyone else. They don’t understand why they have to wait in line. They don’t know why the cashier can’t be faster or more efficient. They don’t understand why everything can’t be done for them. Most of their actions are done from selfishness and empty conceit. They care about themselves and no one else. They are definitely looking out for their own interests.

Then there is also the other extreme of those who never look out for their interests. The person who always puts others’ interests before his/her interests. This person has not been treated well and has been told they don’t matter. They have been taught that what they want isn’t as important as what those around them want. They have come to believe that what they want doesn’t matter. They think their worth is found in giving others what they want. They are not really choosing to put others first. They don’t know any other way.

None of the scenarios listed above are good. Yes, it does say to regard one another as more important than yourselves, but it doesn’t tell you that you don’t matter. It says, do not MERELY look out for your own personal interests. What you want and think matters. We should look out for ourselves. We shouldn’t make that our first priority, though.

We need to make sure we know who we are in God’s eyes. Even though we are called to regard others as more important than we are, we can’t forget that we were all made in God’s image and likeness. Jesus did now submit to others because He thought He was less than them. He didn’t humble himself to serve others because he had to. He did it because he wanted to. I feel this distinction is essential. This is shown in Philippians 2:5-6 “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,  who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.” Jesus knew He was God. He did not empty himself, humble himself because He had no other choice. He did this for us. He did this to show us what we should be doing. He is the “perfecter of faith.” He shows us how to love God perfectly.

The verse above asks us to humble ourselves and to put others before us. Yes, we want to be accepted into the kingdom of heaven. However, this verse tells us we don’t have to prove to God how great we are. We don’t have to act better than everyone else so that God will see us and favor us. Jesus was willing to humble himself. He was willing to empty himself to be fully human with us. Because He did this and because He was willing to be obedient to the Father, the Father lifted Him up and honored Him. Jesus tells us whoever is first on earth will be last in heaven, and whoever is last on earth will be first in heaven. Don’t we want to be first in heaven? Why are we trying so hard to be the best here on earth when this life is so short compared to eternity? Let’s all take some time today to think about how we can help elevate others instead of ourselves. How can we love others enough to regard them as higher than ourselves?

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless all those listening to this episode today.  Lord, we love you, and we need you to help us. Sometimes, we step over others on our way to the top. Please forgive us and help us to change that. Sometimes, we regard ourselves as greater than others. Please forgive us and help us change. Lord, we want to treat others the way you treated others. We want to humble ourselves. We know we need your help, though.  Please help us! We love you, Lord, and we ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’ holy name, Amen!

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. My new group coaching kicks off tomorrow night. Check out my website for all the details. walkboldlywithjesus.com, I hope you will join me to go deeper in your relationship with the Lord. Why is it that we will go to an exercise class if we want to be fitter, we will go to the doctor if we want to feel better, we will seek help if we're going to improve most areas in our lives, and yet we don’t seek help growing in our relationship with the Lord? I remember hearing Matthew Kelly talking about this. He once asked His dad why he always told him and his brothers to “Listen to the coach.” He said it frequently. Matthew’s dad said you can get good at a sport independently. However, if you want to be exceptional, you need to listen to your coach. I never forgot this, and after hearing this, I decided to get a spiritual director. I was nervous to get the first time, but I knew I wanted to be an exceptional Catholic. I knew I needed help figuring out how to grow closer to the Lord. I can tell you that it is easier to grow closer to the Lord when surrounded by a community of fellow believers striving to grow closer to the Lord.  I hope you will consider joining me at least for the first month and see how it goes. Feel free to email me with any questions. [email protected] I look forward to meeting you here again tomorrow! Remember, Jesus loves you, and so do I! Have a blessed day!

www.findingtruenorthcoaching.com

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