Jesus is the Definition of Success

Today’s reading: Philippians 2:1-11

A friend asked on his Facebook page yesterday, “Who do you think of first when you think of ‘success?’

I was just about to reply with, “Jesus,” when I noticed that someone else had already beat me to it.  That warmed my heart.

Then I thought of the crazy thing this very friend had done just hours before making that post. It, too, meets my definition of success.

J.B. had devoted his Sunday to a 1,000 mile round trip across Texas to finalize the sale of several insurance policies I am buying from him. When he arrived, it was apparent that his trip had been “unnecessary.” We could have certainly completed all of these transactions via the Internet and/or mail.

I typed quotation marks around “unnecessary” because, while that’s the word The World would use for J.B.’s trip, it is not the truth. “A blessing” is the better phrase.

J.B. had mistakenly assumed that his company would require him to get a few physical specimens from me to accompany the life insurance application I submitted. It turns out, the company had already contracted that job to a local lab where I have an appointment later today.

J.B. and I are long-time friends, so his professional integrity would not have been at any risk had he complained privately to me along the lines of, “Those so-and-so’s! Why did they let me drive all this way for nothing?!”  I probably would have called them so-and-so’s myself.

But he didn’t say anything like that.

“I’m really glad I got to come down here,” he said instead.  “It’s been great seeing you again!”

J.B. and I got to visit for about 2 hours, and our conversation went far beyond the business of insurance.  It was, indeed, a great time.

But after he left, I realized that, even in our extra-curricular discussions, we’d not said anything that we couldn’t have talked about via the telephone or Internet.  His trip really had been “unnecessary,” and I thought of all the things I would have done to avoid it had I been in J.B.’s shoes. (I would certainly have made a few pre-trip inquiries about the specimen collection procedure in this case!)

But I’m glad J.B. didn’t avoid the trip! It was, truly, a blessing!

And, in the same way, today’s reading reminds me of how blessed I am because Jesus did not avoid The Cross.

“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death — even death on a cross.  Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth. (Verses 2-10)

I must make sure my knee does more bending in honor of Christ’s great blessing for me. And I need to do more gracious serving of my friends.

Thanks be to God for my brothers and sisters in Christ. May I always remember to serve them humbly.