Manna Monday: So Long Selfishness

Good Monday Morning JT friends!!!

It's going to be a great Monday! Be encouraged this morning!

Today we turn our attention to Philippians 2:3, "Do nothing out of selfishness..."

Can you confidently say that each day you are focused on others over yourself?

I am going to be honest with you all here. I have to daily reprogram my mind through the reading of God's Word to be focused on others. I don't have it in me to think of others first. I have to yield to the Holy Spirit and let Him help me to prefer others over preferring myself. I have to let scripture remind me that God instructs me to think of others before thinking of myself.

Selfishness shows up in everything:

our marriages, parenting, work, friendships....

• We want to always be right in our marriage.
• We want to have more "time by our self" over biblically parenting our children to the end of each day.
• We want our work to be appreciated and celebrated instead of being overlooked and unappreciated.
• We want our friends to think of us and encourage us before we think about and encourage them first.

Selfishness is something we fight against each day as a believer.
Even when we do something for someone else in action, we still battle in our mind having to take the time to do it. Does that speak to anybody this morning? Let me explain what I mean.

A Small Selfish Story

About ten years ago, I was in the grocery store and in a hurry. I came to the butter section and there was this elderly man staring at the butter. He wasn't moving, his eyes looked glazed over due to the various choices of butter staring back at him. Before I knew it, he asked me if I could help him find whipped butter. He went on to say that he had been given strict instructions from his wife to purchase only "whipped butter." Ten years ago there weren't many options when it came to whipped butter. I was tired from a long day at work and couldn't get home quick enough. There was no where I had to be. I just wanted to be home. At first, I didn't mind him asking, I wanted to help. But as I looked at the butter section, everything looked the same and there was no whipped butter. My selfish thoughts came rushing in ("this is taking more time than I want it to take," I thought.) 

     Even though my actions appeared (to him and others) to be unselfish, the selfish war was raging within me because I wanted to be done finding whipped butter and go home. I was being "inconvenienced" at this point when there was no whipped butter to be found. It turns out there was one brand of whipped butter that we finally found out of all the choices on the shelf.

Dear sister, this is our sin nature. Don't be discouraged. We have the victory through Jesus to walk forward (1 Corinthians 15:57-58). Selfishness is a daily fight. Be watchful. Be aware. The battle to defeat it begins each morning when you surrender your mind to the authority of God's Word.  

Consider the following verses:

Galatians 5:26

Romans 12:10

Ephesians 5:21

Why Is Selflessness Important? 

Because it points others to Christ and not ourselves. We live out our eternal purpose when we point others to Christ. Our selflessness is a witness to the selfishness of the world. Our selflessness points to a greater good because there is nothing good within us except Christ.

I don't know what selfishness you are battling in your own life, but I know that we have help through the Holy Spirt and through the reading of God's Word to overcome it. I believe the greatest way we can become less selfish is to practice being selfless.

Is God calling you to prefer others before preferring your own selfish wants and desires?

Follow His leading.

Prepare your mind through reading scripture to win the war of selfishness each day because it's always there.