Today's Scripture Philippians 2:3
Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.
We move at warp speed, rushing through exhausting days to fall into bed with unmet demands still heavy on our hearts.
With so many responsibilities and so much pressure to perform, it is easy to develop tunnel vision. We focus exclusively on ourselves and our dreams and desires. Others become resources to reach our goals or nuisances that impede our progress. People only call us so that we can resolve or fix their emergency. Then we don't hear from them until they have their next emergency. Sound familiar?
Jesus calls us away from a life of selfishness into a life of sacrifice. Following His example, we learn to look up and look around. When the disciples shooed away the children who clambered around Christ, He stopped them and pulled the children in for a blessing.
On a life-or-death mission, He stopped for the woman with the issue of blood. On the Sabbath day, while the Pharisees looked on scornfully, He healed the man with a withered hand.
In the middle of important work, He noticed and took time. In fact, the irritants and outcasts were His important work. Instead of pushing them to the fringes of society, He pulled in the prostitutes, swindlers, crippled, and poor.
Where can we swap our selfish ambition for sacrifice? How can we exchange our conceit for concern? In the middle of our important work, let us look up and look around.