Selfishness. Ali's true religion. Me

I've began to think about what it actually means to be a Christian. I have thought about my faith, my worship, my prayer, my sin, my bible, my achievements, my experience... and realized this is not life. Why am I concentrating on myself? Isn't it about Jesus?

I hurriedly typed some thoughts into my phone over the last few weeks... around my selfishness and my (lack of humility), I came to the rash conclusion that Christians are inherently selfish...

Often my lack of humility can get in the way of my life with God. I am full of pride of my achievements, that are all God-given. I am full of pride with my life as a christian (what is there to be proud of?!), as I love my works, my achievements, how holy I am, even when all the work has been done entirely by the Lord. 

The love of myself leads me to selfishness amongst friends, to lust and a want for more of me. 

The love of myself gives me a dull joy when the full joy is from the Lord alone. 

Where does this inward looking selfishness come from? I need to stop looking at myself and look to others and then I will meet God.

So after these weeks of thinking about me and how selfish I am, the lord spoke through Ali Scott at the weekend away very clearly. He echoed all the feelings I had had about selfishness by looking at True Worship in James 1. He pointed out that when we concentrate on ourselves, on our religion, we become religious fools, but not fools for Christ.

(Ali used words from James 1 v26-27, Amos 5v21-24, Isaiah 1 v10-17, Isaiah 58 and others)

James 1 talks about how true religion should be finding the widows and fatherless, the lost, the broken, the run-down, the tired. When do I do that?! When do I yearn after the people Jesus did? When do I actually follow the way Jesus set out?

The message puts it like this:- "Anyone who sets himself up as "religious" by talking a good game is self-deceived. This kind of religion is hot air and only hot air. Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world." (James 1 v26-27)

(the message version of Amos and the Isaiahs are equally as excellent)

I am not sure what form this may take, but I am beginning to realize it is not about me.

It took me a while.

I guess it will continue to take a while.