Humbly Coming Before the Lord.

Philippians 2:1-11
1 If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
7 but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

I'll tell you one thing I learned while in Haiti is that we often have greater joy when we recognize, acknowledge, and thank God for the blessings that he provides for us. (Of course, in Haiti I had a whole bunch of emotions). This was clear as I talked to some of the kids through an interpreter in Haiti. It's not always an easy thing to remember these blessings, when we're self-centered. We forget the end result of being in a relationship with Christ and the blessings that come along the way. I heard someone say once that "we're here to serve, not to be served." That's such a good thing to live by, because it reminds you of the blessings you should pass on to others. If you don't have time to serve then you certainly won't have time to appreciate God's blessings that he gave to you either.

Someone also said something recently like don't go for the higher ranking. The center of attention usually calls our name. Still, you don't want to avoid things completely or go into isolation. Don't avoid things that make you become a good leader and responsible person. Ultimately, we should be overjoyed that we have the opportunity to glorify God. To do this properly, don't do what you want to do all the time. Instead, do what God wants you to do. That includes, serving others to satisfy their needs.

We've talked about obeying God before. Give any pride and disobedience you may have to him. You will be joyful when you walk with Christ. Paul's joy is what kept him going in the scripture above.

There is a place that we will be forever find peace and come to find complete joy. It is a one, true promise. Some will bend the knee before Christ and see that they refused to serve others and live for the Lord, thus going their own ways. A big price is then paid.