Acts 20:35 – “…remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
I’m reading an incredible little book by Timothy Keller right now by the name of The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulnness. I am currently in the middle, but so far I have gotten so much out of it that I just had to write a little about it. Quoting C.S. Lewis, Keller notes this about pride – “Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next person. We say that people are proud of being rich, or clever, or good looking, but they are not. They are proud of being richer, or cleverer, or better-looking than others.”
Pride’s fuel is it’s competitive nature. But when we are constantly trying build our self-worth off comparing ourselves to others, we will never be enough because there is always someone we have to be better than.
Keller’s eventual point, which he writes about so much better than I can, is that ultimate fulfillment, love, joy, life… etc. is found in finding our identity in the grace of God. It’s actually not about us at all. It’s about God! It’s about loving Him and loving others. And the more we grow, by the grace of God, in thinking less about ‘me, I, and my’, and more about loving God and others, the more we will experience the ultimate joy of loving Him and others.
I mean, when you think about it, aren’t the happiest people you know, the most selfless people you know. This is true because their worth is not based on “self”. In fact, there is no “self” in their [self]worth. Their worth is not based on their thoughts of themselves or other’s thoughts of them at all. It’s not ever about “their worth” at all. It’s about others for these blessed people. And they are FREED by loving God and others, and forgetting themselves.
Let us pursue and pray toward what would give us true joy. Let us stop chasing the miserable trap that is the American Dream. Let us chase God and the joy that He has created us to experience in loving Him and others. Glory be to God!
P.S. – I encourage you to read The Freedom of Self-Forgettfulness. I have found it cheapest on iBooks ($1.99). Hope you all have a great day. God bless.
Love Uncensored 