Lend a Helping Hand

Don’t push your way to the front; don’t sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.

-- Philippians 2 : 4

Sometimes, one of the great things about deep-spirited friends is that we can ask them for help. And they can ask us for help! We already talked yesterday about figuring out when we’re able to give help and when we’re not, but today I think it would be great if we spent some time thinking about why we give help. Maybe the best reason to give help to each other is because we care about each other.

I mean, think about this. What a difference it makes to help someone because you are deep-spirited friends with them – because you share something important like Jesus, because you can take risks together, and because you know that you give generously to each other – as opposed to helping someone because you feel the need to please them! The latter often leaves us feeling exhausted and probably isolated from thinking like we’re supposed to be strong and put together for the sake of someone else all the time. But the former is renewing, reciprocal, and helps us follow each other toward Jesus.

What if you approached your friendships in this way? Would that make you look more like Jesus?