I say be guided by the Spirit and you won’t carry out your selfish desires. A
person’s selfish desires are set against the Spirit, and the Spirit is set against
one’s selfish desires. They are opposed to each other, so you shouldn’t do
whatever you want to do.”
Galatians 5:16-17 CEB
https://www.bible.com/37/gal.5.16-17.ceb
As my Spirit slowly gains strength, I start to realize how my selfishness can
actually, harm me by being easily manipulated.
We regularly hear how others are using our selfish desires to achieve personal
gain. “We do this for you” is regularly used to urge us to act in their direction.
It’s all about you when really it’s all about them. Even now, I am using the word
“you” a lot. It’s because when I taught school, I learned “you” was the best way
to motivate kids. It really never dawned on me that I am actually manipulating
their selfish desires to have them act in a way I want them to act. It’s amazing
how this becomes revealed from the Holy Spirit.
If you really want to internalize what I’m saying, keep track every time you hear
“you, you’re” in ads, news, and media and relate that to when “others or them” is
used. Is their message focused on you or is it really about them?
Now, I think in terms of helping others not because I want to feed their selfish
desires but because I generally do it out of love for them. There should be no
gain for me. I try not to have a hidden agenda to garner internal gain because that
also feeds my selfish desires. For me, that is actually a complete shift in thought.
I actually assess whether my actions purely help others or are used to serve my
needs under the guise of helping them.
It’s how one shifts their thoughts to actually act in a way that pleases the Holy
Spirit.
by Kent Brosh a Kawaiaha’o Blog Contributor
Alberta, Canada
