Die To Self I

“Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too” Phil.2:3-4.

The church is an amazing place and it comprises of all kinds of people. There are people who are willing to sacrifice their time, energy, and resourses to ensure that the affairs of the Lord run smoothly and there are people who are not willing to make such sacrifices. Selfish people don’t serve. Even among the service team, these are the group of people who have committed to giving their time and talent to ensure that God’s work is done. Yet even among them, some are selfish. They will only show up in church a few minutes before the worship experience when they know that all the work would have been done. They are content to show up only after all the heavy lifting has been done. Selfish people don’t serve. Selfish people think the church is for them; the church must serve them and their needs. I have news for you – you are a part of the church and the church does not exist for you. We are the church and we exist for the world. Stop thinking about what the church can do for you. You are a part of the church and the question is what are we doing for our community? What are we doing for the people that are close to us but far from God? If you are married to a selfish person, you will discover that they want to be served but they don’t want to serve. Marriage is bliss because we serve one another. So, if one party is selfish, he or she wants to be served but is not prepared to roll up his or her sleeves and wash the feet of the other person. Why? Because selfish people don’t serve. Your husband needs to get something done but you are selfish and all you are interested in is how he can finance your pleasures. Or your wife needs to get something done but because you are selfish, you can’t even lend a hand to help her. Is the newspaper or the news more important than helping your wife out? Selfish people do not serve but what happens at the altar is that you die to yourself.

When you visit the place of spirituality, there are some questions that you will inevitably have to deal with. Question 1: is there a habit God wants me to break or to stop? Is there something that I am doing that has become a habit that God wants me to stop? When you raise and service your altar, you will have to deal with this question. Some people are hooked on pornography; you don’t need a prophet to tell you that is a habit God wants you to stop. For some of us, it is something as “harmless” as gaming. I love to play games but there are times I let the games go so that I can focus on God.

Prayer: Holy Spirit, help me to love others even as I love myself. To take an interest in others and not look out for my interests alone, in Jesus Name.