I am in some football pools this fall, as I have been for the past several years. One of these involves $1 a week. The others are bragging rights pools. When I see the NCAA or NFL games that I need to choose from each week I go to the different polls, blogs, and Internet sites that rank teams from top to bottom in relationship to the team they are playing each week. I factor in which team is the home team and if I have some prejudice for or against a team. (i.e. I'll never pick UK or the Cowboys and I'll always pick UofL and the Packers.)(Don't hate me. I'm just being honest!!) I do put a lot of credence in the ways that the different gurus rank the teams though. They are professional sports writers, coaches, and analysts, so I respect what they have to say. Their rankings are important to my decisions.
Jesus tells us in the ninth chapter of Mark's Gospel that if we want to be first in God's rankings, then we have to place ourselves last and servant or slave to God and others. This may be the hardest lesson that Jesus teaches us. This is a tough thought for our American minds to get around. We are very big into building ourselves up, keeping up with the Jones', being the best, or at least being better than the next guy or gal. I do not think we are selfish people when we dig below the surface, but I think we are trained to make sure we take care of ourselves financially, educationally, physically, militarily, and about every other "ly" we can consider. Jesus and the Gospel fly in the face of any thing remotely selfish. Jesus' life and teaching make us constantly question our tendencies to take care of our self and to live for God and others first.
The good news is that our efforts at living and trusting in God can be and are acceptable if they are even incremental. One step at a time and one day at a time is fine with God. God is Love, Mercy, and Forgiveness. So He accepts our minute human efforts in living in His image as baby steps toward the goal of fully imitating Him in our next life.
May your prayer and your efforts at living for God's Will and God's Kingdom increase in being selfless. May your actions and thoughts today be steps toward be first later and last now.
paz,
Fr. Chuck
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It is very hard to be unselfish, especially in our culture. I have to remind myself daily that it isn't all about "me", but what I do for others and how I treat them.
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