"Living beyond yourself" part 5 in what makes you grow

Ok, I have not blogged in a while. Life got crazy, but I am back.

The fourth essential in what makes you grow is to make "living beyond yourself" a necessity in your approach to living. We live in a culture that speaks "living for yourself" as the norm, but God challenges us to walk a different path.

Philippians 2:4
"do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others."

Until "living beyond yourself" is central to how you approach your everyday living, you will not develop. Simply put, you may know a lot of the scripture, you may even teach it, you may go to church every week and know how to look like a good Christian, you may be a pastor, but until you long to "live beyond yourself" by making a positive impact in someone else's life...you will never see the character of God fully develop in you. Take the religious leaders in Jesus' day, they knew scripture, prayed a lot, but they lived for themselves. This is why Jesus called those religious leaders a "brood of vipers."

"Living beyond yourself" can take many different forms. It can be expressed by doing a kind act, letting someone else have their way, limit your lifestyle so that you have the money to help a friend or support the church, invite someone to come to church with you, forgive someone who doesn't deserve it, go on a missions trip, the possibilities are endless.

So right now, walk away from the computer, and do something for someone else.