Good morning and happy July 16th. It’s going to be hot enough this week that the little country churches will change their signs to say, “You think it is hot here?”
Last month when I traveled to St. Louis for work, we stayed at a hotel that offered the complimentary breakfast. I am not sure if they realize we are smart enough to know it is included in the price of the room so it isn’t actually complimentary. Kind of like the remodeling company on TV that always advertises “free, stunning granite” with all the projects that they do. Anyways, with eager anticipation, I made my way to the dining area to look for my gourmet breakfast. As you know, nothing says homemade cooking like powdered eggs and meat products that have been microwaved. Momentarily distracted by the lure of the java station, I poured myself a cup of caffeine. It was then that the construction crew showed up. There was five or six guys that came in at the same time dressed in jeans, work boots, etc. And they attacked the little breakfast bar with a vengeance. In fact, it was like a plague of locusts devastating a field. There plates were piled high with all that it could hold. 5 or 6 pancakes, the equivalent of a dozen eggs, sausage and bacon stacked up like cord wood. When the dust settled, there was nothing left on the buffet. Seriously, they took it all. A couple of them even grabbed some of the yogurt that was there. That had to be because it was free because no one actually likes that stuff, do they? Fortunately, I had plenty of time that morning and I figured within the hour they would microwave something else and put it on the buffet. As I sat there and sipped on my coffee, an elderly gentlemen arrived to get breakfast. He grabbed a plate and walked up to the buffet only to realize that there wasn’t anything there. Confused, it carried his empty plate and say down near me. He asked me, “Where is the food this morning?” So, I explained to him about what had just happened. After another ten or fifteen minutes, the lady that was helping customers at the front desk, answering the phone, possibly shuttling people to the airport, went into the kitchen and grabbed more food to put out.
As I thought about what I had seen, I was reminded about our battle with selfishness. Were the guys entitled to the breakfast buffet? Yes, they were staying at the hotel too. Could they have as much as they wanted? Yes. Did they seem to care that other people were there? No, it didn’t seem to phase them at all. They wanted to make sure and get all of the food that they wanted. It is kind of a picture of the world in which we live. It is every person for themselves. Get what you want, take what you think you deserve, and let the others want or do without. Sadly, I have witnessed similar things at a church potluck. People assess that there are a lot of people there and there might not be enough for seconds. So, what do they do? They take as much as humanly possible on the first trip through the line. It seems as though the battle never ends between selfishness and selflessness. Obviously, in the Christian life, we are seeking to become selfless like Jesus. But it is a battle. In fact, most people don’t recognize or aren’t willing to admit that this is a challenge. BTW, a simple way to evaluate where you are at is to look at your checkbook and your calendar. How you spend the time and money that God entrusts you with will speak volumes as to where you are at. Of course, one of the initial hurdles to get over is that we think that it is our time and our money. It’s really not. God just allows us to be stewards of it. Take some time to reflect on how you are doing in all of this. Is the focus of your life more about self or others?
3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. 4 Everyone should look not to his own interests, but rather to the interests of others. (Philippians 2:3-4)
From our neighborhoods to the nations,
Pastor Larry
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