Thinking of others on Thanksgiving!

"If you think about it, the human race is pretty self-absobred. What I mean is, as a human, I am flawed in that it is difficult for me to consider others before myself. It feels like I have to fight against this force, this current within me that, more often than not, wants to avoid serious issues and please myself, buy things for myself, feed myself, entertain myself and all of that. All  I'm saying is that  if we, as a species, could fix our self- absorption, we could end a lot of pain in the world." - Donald Miller - Blue Like Jazz

I think about my own self - absorption all the time.  I am coming to a point in my life where  my wants don't really matter.  I still fight the selfish ways of life everyday, but it seems like it just doesn't matter anymore.  I have had a good life and now I want others to have what I have been given.

I thought about thanksgiving tomorrow and how many will not have what we will have in front of us. A large feast!  Many will be living their normal life tomorrow, a life with nothing to cherish.  They made it another day.  Another day of begging, another day of not feeling like they matter to society, another day with nobody caring or giving them the time of day.  I'm sure a lot of homeless people in New York City have been kicked out of their normal spots because of the parade tomorrow.  It's amazing how we live in a country that says all men are created equal, yet we are all  unequal in somebody else's sight.  Our government will send millions of dollars across seas to help other countries and their poverty stricken people.  But our countries poverty level continues to increase by the day.

We are a self- absorbed society.  Considering ourselves before others, our desires first, then whatever is leftover we give to others.  Jesus walked among the worst people of society,  and others will condemn us if we are seen with a bad person. Same way with Jesus in his day, the people he hung out with raised the eyebrows of the church leaders in his day.  They scolded him for being where he was, and we do the same thing today. 

What would happen if we took a bunch of homeless people into our house for an amazing feast on thanksgiving.  The neighbors would be talking, not all but a few would be.  They would be judging us for some reason. Would you care? Probably not, you did it for unselfish reasons.  Our hearts our amazingly hardened in this world, mostly because that is what Satan does to us.  He puts judgement into our hearts and places also self- absorption in there.  We really aren't bad people we are kept by Satan from being who we really should be.  He keeps us from being complete in Christ.  If Satan didn't scheme us all the time could you imagine what we could do in the name of Christ.  Exactly what Donald Miller said in the last sentence of his quote. We could end a lot of pain in the world.  I remind myself everyday to have the compassion and eyes of Christ.  I fail at this all the time, but I strive to see others as Christ saw them.  Not a problem or an embarrassment to society, but an important part in life.  Look and see tomorrow what you see with the eyes of Christ. You'll be amazed when you put yourself behind you and others in front of you. Happy Thanksgiving