Being Selfish
Where do you struggle with selfish tendencies? How does that show a lack of trust in God?
Verse of the Day
Selfishness only causes trouble. You are much better off to trust the LORD.
Today’s Devotional
I’m just going to say it. I don’t want to talk about selfishness. I am not qualified. I spend a considerable amount of time fighting with my selfish desires. Today we were supposed to begin a new spiritual discipline, the discipline of submission. And as I was reading the chapter on submission from Richard Foster’s book, Celebration of Discipline, I quickly came to the conclusion that I need more time to study this topic than I currently have available. I am in a very busy time as we as only a few weeks away from our daughter’s wedding.
So let’s talk about today’s verse. Many other translations of the Bible use the word “greedy” in place of selfishness. But what is greed if not selfishness? Also, many other translations say that trusting in God leads to prosperity. And while I believe that to be true, I think it depends on your definition of prosperity. Prosperity does not always mean an abundance of money. It could mean a fruitful harvest of love, or joy, or peace.
So…what is the problem with selfishness? For me, the problem boils down to an inaccurate view of reality. If I am living my life in a selfish way, I am behaving in a way that says that I am the only person who matters. And that is just not accurate.
I woke up this morning in a very uncomfortable mental state. So much so that my body was reacting in an abnormal way. I had too much adrenaline and my heart felt like it was beating out of my chest. Do you know why I felt this way? I didn’t know until my husband asked me how I was and I proceeded to word-vomit all of my struggles and concerns.
My husband is a brave man. Do you know what he said to me? (Keep in mind, he said this in a very kind and compassionate way.) He said, “It seems to me like you want what you want when you want it. Even with God.”
Ouch.
He was exactly right. I was being selfish with God. I wanted answers to my prayers now. I wanted resolution on some things quickly. My expectations were far from realistic. Many of the things that were bothering me are things that take time. Lots of time.
Do you know what would be better? Trusting God. Trusting His timing. Trusting that His ways and His timing are perfect. Trusting that there is a divine reason for His timing. Trusting Him enough to choose to praise Him in the middle of the mess. Trusting Him enough to choose selfLESSness.
We can be selfish in many ways: with our money, with our time, with our attention, with our affection, with our praise, with our words, with our need for attention, with wanting our own way. What would it look like if we trusted God enough to be selfless with our money, our time, our attention, our affection, our praise, our words, our need for attention and our desires? Wouldn’t it be better? May we trust God enough to be selfless today.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
Where, specifically, do you struggle with selfishness? If you aren’t sure, feel free to ask God for self-awareness.
What would it look like if you trusted God enough to be selfless in that area?
What could you do today that would be an active choice of selflessness?
Do you trust God enough to be selfless and that He will still meet your needs? How can you show that?
Invite the Holy Spirit into any areas of your life where you struggle with selfishness.