You Be Jesus!

“Don’t be selfish; don’t live to make a good impression on others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourself… Your attitude should be the kind that was shown us by Jesus Christ, who, though He was God, did not demand and cling to His rights as God…” Phil. 2:3,5-6 [TLB]

God is instructing us to use Jesus as an example of how to be unselfish because the Bible states that “…though He was God, did not demand and cling to His rights as God…”. The story is told of a mother who had  two sons- Jason and Jake. Jason was older than Jake. So the mother was making pancakes in the kitchen and as the boys perceived the smell, they came into the kitchen. As boys would do, they sat on the kitchen table waiting for the pancakes. And the mother saw this as a perfect opportunity to teach the boys about selflessness and Jesus. And the mother said, if Jesus were here, he would wait for his brother to have the first pancake and wait patiently for the next one. And Jason looked at Jake and said, Jake, you be Jesus.

 What he was saying in essence was that he was not willing to be selfless and let the pancake go. In your relationships, are you saying to the other person, you be Jesus? Or are you going to be Jesus? Why? It is because just one unselfish act can change everything. There are wives that are waiting for their husbands to be Jesus and husbands that are waiting for their wives to be Jesus. After all, she is always going for prayer meetings, so it is time to practice what she is being taught. But think about it; if they tell you to be Jesus, then be Jesus. It is tough but that is the call. When we look at what Jesus has done for us, it is easy to be who He has called us to be.

“…let us stop just saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions.”  1 John 3:18 [TLB]. I want you to write down these questions: who am I going to talk to and invite to church between now and Sunday? Whose difference am I going to accept? What silence am I going to break? Which elephant in the room am I going to confront? What unselfish act or word am I going to do or say? What am I going to do to make my relationship with my in-laws better? What am I going to do to make my relationship with my teenage child better? What am I going to do to make my relationship with my spouse better? What am I going to do to make my relationship with my colleagues better? Go ahead and answer these questions and act on the answers you have given.

Prayer: Holy Spirit, help me to really love the people You have brought into my life and show it by my actions, in Jesus Name.