Written by Chuck Swindoll, these encouraging devotional thoughts are published seven days per week.
Read 2 Corinthians 8:10–11
A full year before the apostle Paul wrote to people who comprised the Corinthian church, they had begun a project. No doubt they got started with a burst of enthusiasm, the thrill of a fresh beginning. But with the passing of time, the newness had worn off. The edge of their spontaneous motivation had gotten dull. It became a monotonous marathon that dragged slowly on and on. So, Paul prodded them to stick with their commitment:
Read 2 Corinthians 8:7–8
I’ll never forget something I heard on the radio several years ago. A woman in West Palm Beach, Florida, died alone at the age of seventy-one. The coroner’s report was tragic. “Cause of death: malnutrition.”
The dear lady wasted away to fifty pounds. Investigators who found her said the place where she lived was a veritable pigpen. One seasoned inspector declared he’d never seen a residence in greater disarray.
Read Luke 9:23
Do you recall Jesus' radical philosophy of servanthood? It’s found tucked away in His now immortal words:
He said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.” (Luke 9:23)
Following Christ as His disciple is a costly, unselfish decision. It calls for a radical examination of our self-centred life. Whew! That’s one of those easy things to say but awfully tough to carry out.
Read Mark 10:43–45
Quite a while ago, a young man expressed an interest in living in our home and being discipled in the context of our family. He assured me time and again, “I really want to help any way you or your wife may need me. My only reason for doing this is to serve. I just want to be a servant, Chuck.”
Read 2 Corinthians 8:1–3
The Christians in the Macedonian churches were servants who gave without any concern about receiving the credit for their generosity. But Paul reveals something else remarkable about the nature of their gift:
Read 2 Corinthians 8:1–3
When the Apostle Paul his way through Europe, specifically the region of ancient Macedonia, he shared with those believers the financial need of the Jerusalem church. Macedonia was already an economically depressed area. Macedonia was to Paul what Bangladesh would be to the US. It would be like encouraging the poorest people of Appalachia to respond to those who are hurting in the ghetto of Harlem. “You people under this bridge...give to those people on welfare!” would be a strange appeal today.
Read Romans 12:10
Part of humility is having a preset mentality that determines thoughts like this:
“I care about those around me.”
“Why do I have to be first? Today I’m going to help someone else win.”
“It’s my sincere desire to curb my competitive tendencies and turn that energy into encouraging at least one other person.”
Read Romans 12:3
I like the tongue-in-cheek definition of philosophers one of my seminary professors would occasionally use. It’s classic: “Philosophers are people who talk about something they don’t understand and then make you think it’s your fault!”
Lots of philosophies are floating around, and most of them are downright confusing. Interestingly, those that are clear enough to be understood usually end up focusing full attention on the individual. Consider a few of them:
Education says, “Be resourceful; expand yourself!”
Read Philippians 2:3–5
I remember reading of Leonard Bernstein, the late, legendary conductor of the New York Philharmonic, giving an insightful answer in an informal interview. Following a televised performance, one admirer asked: “Mr. Bernstein, what is the most difficult instrument to play?”
With quick wit and without even a thought he replied:
“Second fiddle. I can get plenty of first violinists, but to find one who plays second violin with as much enthusiasm...now that’s a problem. And yet if no one plays second, we have no harmony.”
Read Genesis 3:7
To fully understand the battle against “self” we must go back, way back, to that ancient scene pictured for us in the second and third chapters of Genesis: the Garden of Eden. What a splendid setting! Beautiful beyond description, a perfect, pollution-free atmosphere, luxurious foliage, fragrant flowers, crystal-clear water—that Garden would make Tahiti look like a pigsty by comparison.
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