JANUARY 30 • TRUE LEADERSHIP
Selfishness vs. Selflessness
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Philippians 2:3
Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor. 1 Corinthians 10:24
We are all selfish — each to his own degree. We want what we want. We want our own way. It’s what I believe causes most arguments… and divorces… and broken relationships… and wars. Instead of being self-less, we are self-ish. In the scripture reference above, God is saying, do nothing from selfishness. Not do just a little, or do just one thing. Do nothing. So that means that we shouldn’t do anything out of selfishness but we should be humble and treat others as more important than ourselves!
As a leader, it means that we have to do our homework and know our people. It means we have to consider people before we consider ourselves (they eat, then we eat…). It means we have to have humility (see January 20). It means we have to care for them deeply — not superficially — or not just in a business way — the excuse we use to justify actions, “It’s business!”
What is conceit? Arrogance, immodesty, harsh, proud, self-importance, pompous, smug. Certainly none of us are those things? To be candid, I can be most of those things from time-to-time. But by the grace of God, I am being weaned from those. We all can be these things to differing degrees, more or less, depending on our personality. We may not be fully arrogant, but are we meek, humble, and modest? We may not be harsh, but are we ever bad-tempered, cold, or neutral? Maybe not pompous, but pretentious, indignant, or rhetorical? Is there a deeper level we should be aspiring to?
Selfless is defined as altruistic, benevolent, charitable, considerate, devoted, generous, helpful, humanitarian, incorruptible, loving, magnanimous (my favorite!), noble, self-effacing, self-sacrificing. The second greatest commandment that God left us with is to love our neighbors (everyone) as ourselves — to treat them well. Leadership is how well we treat our people — are we influencing them for good or evil, success or failure. I am committing to treat others better this year. Who’s with me?
Pray: Lord help me to care for others more than I care for myself; help me consider others more highly than I do myself; and help me do it without grumbling or complaining.
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