On Throwing a Holiday Pity Party

Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name. Philippians 2:1-9

Imagestock.xchange "hisks"

Today is Valentine's Day. A lot of women, young and old, are thinking about love and hoping, oh-so-very-much, someone will remember them in a special way. And that's not wrong. But it can so easily go wrong.

And it certainly has gone wrong for me a few times! In fact, I have been guilty of feeling quite sorry for myself if Mark neglected to plan for my birthday, Christmas, Mother's Day or Valentine's Day. (Have I mentioned planning for holidays is not one of Mark's areas of strength?) In the midst of my pity party, the love and care Mark had exhibited the other days of the year would be forgotten as I focused exclusively on his present failure. 

Selfish is defined as "lacking consideration for others; concerned chiefly with one's own personal profit or pleasure." And, sadly, our culture—both Christian and non-Christian—not only accepts selfishness, it openly celebrates it. And, I'm afraid, it is often most conspicuously displayed in disappointment with holidays. At least for me.

But Philippians 2:1-9 reveals that type of thinking for what it was. Christ, who unlike me is infinitely worthy of honor, not only didn't get sullen when horrifically abused, He humbled Himself even to the point of death on a cross. Unlike me, He did nothing—not one little thing—out of selfishness, self-ambition or conceit. 

While no human example can compare to Christ's selflessness, my daughter recently posted this video to her facebook site and I thought it was a beautiful picture of sacrificial love. As opposed to the definition of selfish, this love showed deep consideration for another, being chiefly concerned with another's profit or pleasure.

True love is never selfish. ("Does not seek its own," 1 Corinthians 13:5b.)  And if I, like Christ, am willing to humble myself, whether my loved ones honor me or don't honor me on any given day, I will be OK. There will be no need to punish them for their real or perceived neglect or, even more counter-productive yet, try to coerce them into honoring me. 

And I don't have to accept this would-be disappointment with a "poor me" attitude. I am simply trusting my honor to the ultimate "lover of my soul," the One who knows all, sees all, and never forgets anything. 

For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister. Hebrews 6:10

See Trusting God to Send a Thunder Storm.
See A Bitter Pill to Swallow.