“Do nothing from selfishness empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves.” (Philippians 2:3, NASB)

Humility – I’m not sure it is a quality much admired anymore. Most want to be important, prominent, and known. Last week it was appropriate to be reading about humility, and regarding others as more important than ourselves, on Martin Luther King Day.

One of his quotes I once read and remember is this:

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’ “

Martin Luther King lived his life doing for others. And died doing the same.

To think and do for others is an act of selflessness, sacrifice, and humility. It conveys the importance in which you think of others. Living this way has a long and lasting impact, even after we are gone.

Martin Luther King lived this way. And so did Jesus.

Father, We come before You, humbly asking for Your help. We need Your help so that we might be able to live selflessly. We want to think of others, putting their needs before our own, but to do so, we need more of You. Change us – give us the mind of Christ so we can reach out to those around us and leave a seed of hope. In Your Name we pray, Amen.

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“Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.” (Galatians 4:6-7, NASB)

The cross reference in my Bible is Romans 8:17. Paul seems to use the word “heirs” a lot, perhaps because he truly knew what it was to be adopted by God in a very literal sense.

He was a Jew, who became a believer in Christ, and had been called by God to the Gentiles.

We have been given such a privilege to be able to cry out to God, “Abba! Father!” In our weakest, broken, and most painful of times, we can go to our Father with our needs. And He hears us.

Abba! Father! We are in desperate need of You today. We pray for Your peace to fill our land. Today some will be disappointed, some will rejoice. But no matter our stance, may Your peace be over our country. Help us to pray for our leaders, for our lawmakers, and for our people. Be merciful and gracious and turn our hearts to You in repentance as we seek You. May we remember that it is You who turns the hearts of all man to seek You, Your wisdom, and righteousness. In Your Name we pray, Amen.

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“And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” (Philippians 1:9-11, NASB)

This is such a beautiful prayer by which we grow in love, knowledge, discernment, and excellence. But even more, we are filled with the “fruit of righteousness”. This fruit is not brought about by our strength and efforts, but through Jesus Christ alone. We can’t boast or brag on it. The glory must go to God alone.

Father, we thank You that you transform and grow us, bring fruit in our lives that bring glory and honor to You alone. Help us to keep praying for our family to grow in love, knowledge, discernment, so that all we do and say honors You. Amen.

~*~*~

To live selflessly,
we must remember Whose we are,
and let Christ produce His righteous character in us.

Photo by David Fartek on Unsplash
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