Thursday, March 22, 2018
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. You must have the same attitude that Christ
Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not
think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he
took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience
to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
Philippians 2:3-8(NLT)
I have often
inserted a memo-to-self at the end of this passage. It is in the form of a challenge question for
Russell: Give me a list, preacher, of
those for whom YOU would die like a convicted felon, pinned to a tree! I
have to admit my list might be pitifully-small…my wife and kids…their kids. The list might include a few I’ve known who
inspire great admiration because of their goodness. I suppose, if I unpacked my list and picked it
down to to the bone and marrow, my list includes those who impress me – as
important to me. And I am comfortable
with that until I remember the first part of Paul’s instructions, to remember the
interests of others as well as my own.
When I begin to seriously
consider that responsibility to others, my list grows bigger quickly. And then it is a bigger problem, knowing when
to cut the list off. And that becomes
quite a conundrum; how good to you have to be to make my list? How much bad stuff do I have to know about
you before you don’t make the cut?
This exercize
becomes a migraine of epic proportions.
How do you choose who is worthy of your attention, being on your list,
let alone suffering, or even dying for them?
Usually, about the
time my mind gets to this complicated level of list-building, with its maze of who’s-in/who’s-out
rules, qualifications, disqualifications, and exceptions, my head hurts
sufficiently to crumple up my list and toss it in the recycle bin. It is always then, in this nightmarish
wondering that I realize I’ve fallen into the trap one more time of Russell
playing God, instead of Russell listening to, accepting from, and
following-after God.
God has not called
me to build a list of worthy recipients I would choose to bless. I’m not called to build another ark to choose
and save a few, two-by-two. I don’t need
that much wood; you don’t need more than a few logs to build a cross. God has called me to be a servant to all…just
like Jesus.
It is the mind
of a servant God is after.
For You Today
If you’re worried
(like I tend to be) about whom to serve and save…don’t be so much. Just keep your eyes, ears, and heart open;
God will bring them across your pathway, and you’ll find yourself doing strange
and wonderful things you never imagined.
You chew on that as you hit the
Rocky Road; have a blessed day.
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