Philippians 2:4-5 “Abandon every display of selfishness. Possess a greater concern for what matters to others instead of your own interests. And consider the example that Jesus, the Anointed One, has set before us. Let his mindset become your motivation.” Today's episode talks about the need to put others before you. The verse asks us to use Jesus as an example. When we do this, we find it easier to put others first. It is not easy, but it is easier than if we didn't have Jesus as an example. Music:"Adding the Sun" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Don’t Be Selfish
Philippians 2:4-5 “Abandon every display of selfishness. Possess a greater concern for what matters to others instead of your own interests. And consider the example that Jesus, the Anointed One, has set before us. Let his mindset become your motivation.”
This week, I have been spending some time in the book of Philippians. I have just been reading one chapter a day, and it is only four chapters. I am not sure how I ended up in Philippians 4 last week, but then I decided to stay in this book and read a chapter a day. There is so much in there that I could probably read less than a chapter a day and then just sit and talk to the Lord about it.
Today’s verse I chose has meaning as I feel the Holy Spirit lead me to this verse. This week, our youngest son really wanted to go to a concert, and it was on a day when I had mentoring, so I could not drive him. Tony checked his work schedule and did not have to be in the office. He said he would drive him, but he really didn’t want to. It would mean driving into Boston, sitting in a lot of traffic, dropping him off, and coming home again. Boston is about an hour from us without traffic, and you rarely get there without traffic. Tony would have been driving him right when everyone was trying to get home after work. This would be after Tony had worked a full day. It would not have been a great ending to his day. Instead of relaxing after a long day of work, he would have been sitting in traffic for at least two hours.
However, at the time, I didn’t see the situation like this. I just saw that Ryan really wanted to go and that Tony didn’t want to take him. I felt like Tony was being selfish as it was something Ryan really wanted to do. It meant a lot to him, and as I said, I didn’t think about all it would cost Tony. I thought it was just driving him; it’s not a big deal. I wasn’t thinking about how tired Tony might be after working a full day and probably wanting to relax and not sit in traffic.
When I went for a walk yesterday and I was listening to the Big Life mentoring Session for July. Pamela Crim was talking about we should enjoy this time we have during the summer. She talked about how she used to think that being too busy meant she was important. Then someone explained that is not the case. Being too busy has nothing to do with whether you are important or not. Being too busy means you have an imbalance somewhere. She told us not to be too busy to do things with our kids or with our spouse this summer. Our kids will be grown up and out of the house before we know it and then we would give anything to have them be little and ask us to play with them. Pamela gave an example of one of the people in Big Life mentoring who just lost her husband and they have young kids. The woman told the group that her husband invited her to do stuff all the time but she always said no. She was too busy cleaning the house, or taking care of the kids, or whatever it was. She told the group she would give anything to just get one more change to go watch her husband play golf.
After hearing this mentoring session, the Holy Spirit got me thinking about my life and about the argument I had with Tony over Ryan going to the concert. I got to thinking about how Tony would regret not taking Ryan someday, and the Holy Spirit turned my attention to myself. He is so good at doing that, isn’t He? We want to condemn others and judge others, and the Holy Spirit takes out a mirror and shows us where we may need to change too. The Holy Spirit put on my heart that I needed to stop being busy and saying no because it is not something I want to do.
Tony asks if I want to go to concerts with him and Noah pretty often. They tend to go to a lot of concerts. I usually say no because I am only really a fan of concerts if I know every song they are going to sing and can sing along. Otherwise, I find the concerts boring. I am sitting there, not knowing the music, and usually, I am tired. Did you see how many I’s in that statement? I am just thinking about what I want and how I feel. However, each time I said no, I was giving up a chance to hang out with Tony and Noah. Our boys are teens now; well, actually, Sam is already 20. They mostly do their own thing with very little interaction with us. This is somewhat normal teen behavior, but had I said yes to the concerts, I would have gotten to spend more time with Noah, which is especially important this year as he is going away to college in another country soon, and I won’t get to hug him each night before bed.
The verse above says, “Abandon every display of selfishness. Possess a greater concern for what matters to others instead of your own interests. And consider the example that Jesus, the Anointed One, has set before us. Let his mindset become your motivation.” I feel as though the Holy Spirit was pointing out that I need to abandon my selfishness and pay more attention to what matters to others. If there is a concert that Tony really wants to go to, I could care more about the time I would get to spend with him than I do about the fact that I don’t typically like concerts. If my kids really want to do something and I don’t want to do it, I could put their needs first and do the thing.
The verse tells us to consider the example Jesus set before us. Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice. He went to the cross for us. Any sacrifice we make in our lives pales in comparison to that. When we look to Christ as an example, it is easier to put others first. When we realize what He has sacrificed for us, it is a bit easier to sacrifice for others. It also makes it easier when we realize what we will be gaining. Yes, I may end up doing some things I don’t really like doing, but I will be gaining time with my family, of which there is never enough. By not going, I am letting time pass by with my boys. Every time Tony and Noah go to a concert, they go to dinner first. Even if I didn’t like the concert, I would like dinner with Tony and Noah.
What is the Holy Spirit calling you to? In what ways can you possess a greater concern for what matters to others instead of your own interests? How can you abandon every display of selfishness? Deacon Joe, the director of my Encounter School of Ministry class, often says, “Don’t hear what I am not saying.” When he says this, he means, don’t put words in my mouth or don’t misinterpret what I am saying. I feel the Holy Spirit wants me to make it clear that self-care, taking care of yourself, is not selfish. It is a necessity. That is not what this verse is talking about. It’s not saying never to put yourself first; sometimes, you need to do what is right for you. What I am asking you to consider today is where in your life you have been saying no a lot lately. Not because you had to, but because you wanted to? Could you say yes a little more than you have been?
Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for everyone listening and I ask you to bless them and their families. Lord, help us to be less selfish. Help us to care more about what others want than what we want. Help us to view each situation as you see them. Help us to put fist things first. Help us to prioritize family and spending time with them above our own wants. We love you so much Lord. Help us to look to Jesus as our example. We ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’s holy name! Amen!
Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I am going to be opening registration for my fall retreat very soon. I hope you will join me. It will be the weekend of October 11-13th. I believe the theme will be Come As You Are, but I am still working out all the details. I will let you know as soon as I open registration. Remember, Jesus loves you, just as you are, and so do I! May the grace and favor of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
Tuesday: Today’s Word from the Lord was received in February 2024 by a member of my Catholic Charismatic Prayer Group. If you have any questions about the prayer group, these words, or how to join us for a meeting, please email CatholicCharismaticPrayerGroup@gmail.com. Today’s Word from the Lord is, “My heart overflows and is ready to burst from the love and desire you have to come closer to me. I thank you, chosen ones. I love you.”