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Love is Not
Self-Seeking
Ladies, let's be real. Women,
do a lot of things. We are
very “giving”. We “give” to
our spouses, our children, our
family members, our friends, and to
our community. Because of our
tendency to give, we may think
selfishness is not an issue.
However, if we take a closer look at
selfishness, we may find that the vice
of selfishness is present even
in some of our most seemingly
altruistic endeavors.
Selfishness occurs when there is an
excessive concern for
oneself, when the major
consideration for any action is
"What's in it for me?" We are selfish when we
strive to get our own advantage, pleasure, or our way without regard for
others. Whether selfishness
occurs through overt domination or
through subversive manipulation, it
is not characteristic of the love of
God.
Sometimes it is hard to tell if we
are acting out of
self-centeredness. Asking some
hard questions of ourselves and
being honest with our answers can be
of help:
Do you give to those from whom you
get something in return?
Do you use friendships to "get
ahead"?
Do you belittle and discredit the
efforts of others?
Do you work to focus the energy and
efforts of others on your
goals, your agenda, and
things that benefit you?
These attitudes are often present
when struggling with selfishness.
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Why selfishness is not like God
When we have an excessive concern for
our personal well-being, and act in
self-centered ways, our behavior
expresses a lack of belief in God. Our
behavior says that we must attempt to
control our situation in order to
receive the benefit that we want. Our
actions say that we do not believe that
God’s care for us is sufficient, so we
must take matters into our own hands.
Living for Love
Living an excellent life involves praying,
planning, preparing, and producing that which is
of quality and value. However, our
motive should be more than just to say,
“Hey, look at me. Look what I did.”
Our life should be more than a series of
self-serving actions designed to promote
our personal
advancement, personal fame, or personal
power.
In the book of Philippians
chapter 2 and verse 3, the Holy Bible
tells us not to act out of
“selfish ambition or empty conceit.” We
are definitely encouraged to look after
our interests, but not to the exclusion
of the interests of others.
At the heart of our actions should be a
desire to see the blessings and benefit
of God in our life and the lives of
others.
Of the many wonderful things that the
Bible tells us, its message conveys that
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God loves us with an unfailing love
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God is concerned about us
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God will supply all of our needs,
and
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God delights in providing benefits
to His children
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