Looking Out for Number...Two?

If it weren't for our feelings of entitlement, we'd get along a lot better. It seems that everyone is quick to be offended when someone doesn't treat them the way they "deserve," or respect them just because they've demanded it. Maybe if we were more concerned with others than we are with ourselves, there'd be a lot less disagreement.

OK, the truth is; I'm guilty of feeling entitled to certain things as well. Sometimes, because of my age or experience, I expect not to be treated as a novice. I think that's normal, but it's not healthy for me or for society.

God tells us, through Paul's letter to the Philippians, to "do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others" (Philippians 2:3-4, NIV1984). And, if we look at the way Jesus conducted Himself, we see the One who is most powerful submitting to those He created, at least while He was on the earth. Why can't I be more like Him? I want to be, but "I" keep getting in the way.



If I can't be like Him, then I can at least be like my grandmother, Dora Murphy Ruble. She was a humble lady whose name you won't find in history books or news stories. Grandma has been gone a long time now (she died in 1974), but while she was alive, she modeled herself after Jesus and, in doing so, had a way of making everyone think they were her favorite. It's because she concerned herself with their needs over her own. We really miss her.

Let's be servants. Not because we are subordinate, but because we love others. It will change the world.