I believe the point of our lives is to be a good gift to others, to use what we have been given in selfless ways that foster community and show us what it's like to lay down our lives so that others may live.
If we aren't careful, this selfless way of living is all too easy to disregard because we are by nature selfish beings. The irony is that the more of ourselves we give, the more we actually discover who we really are.
Jesus modeled this so perfectly not just in his death but in the way he lived. Scripture tells us that even Jesus did not come to be served, but to serve. How often do I want to be served instead of serving?
Why does our culture celebrate the accumulation of stuff and not the one who gives it all away? Why do we celebrate fame and not the one who is quietly changing lives in their own neighborhood? Why do I fall prey to this selfish way of thinking so often?
Jesus, would you show us how to truly lay down our lives for others. How to not just be for people, but to physically be with them. Would you show us the significance of you becoming human and living among us so that we may become "one of" those we feel called to love.
Ultimately, give us neither poverty nor riches, simply give us our daily bread. In everything we have, may we use it to be the good gift to others that we were made to be.
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