Self-importance leads to self-impotence

I sat in a  meeting today in work, my university work, and read an e-mail informing us that one of our faculty colleagues lost her battle with cancer this week. We didnt stop our meeting, take a pause or even acknowledge the loss of a friend and co-worker. Those who read the e-mail made a few "That's sad" comments but little else. we returned to our business in an effort to complete our tasks and get finished for the day as early as possible.

I was struck by how self-absorbed this act truly was. It has set me to think today about the selfish things that we instinctively do and how so often we seem to think that somehow our selfish actions or desires are perfectly justified. we are full of our own self-importance. The refrain from the parody of that Christian song came to mind, "It's all about ME, really, and all this is for ME ...." (sung to the tune of Its all about You, Jesus). Why do we fail to look around us at the world we live in and fail to think of others above ourselves? Why is it always about us, about our desires, about our wants, about our needs?

As followers of the Way, we must have a different mindset. We must have the mind of Christ, who being in very nature God, who was made of the very same stuff that God is made of, who was equal to God the creator of the universe in every way, yet He humbled himself - ahh, there it is. He HUMBLED himself, He - the creator, the maker of all things He HUMBLED himself, He lowered himself, He wasn't lowered by someone else, He wasnt forced into it, He HUMBLED himself. And as He did that He took on the very nature of a man, the Creator became a created being. He became finite, the infinite was contained. He HUMBLED himself.

Could the simple truth be that easy? Could it really be a matter of us recognizing that regardless of our gifting or ability or position, for us to be like Christ then we must do as He did. We MUST HUMBLE ourselves. We must fight against the world as it attempts to elevate us, and we must fight against ourselves as we attempt to elevate ourselves. We must resist the urge to raise our heads above all others and we must take on the very nature of a servant. We must force ourselves to seek out a life of service, a life where we look to raise others up, a life where we spend all of our energy in exalting others and leading them to the Savior.


HUMBLE yourselves therefore, under God's mighty hand, that HE may lift you up, in due time.