How to Live a Fun, Purpose-filled, and Joyful 2025?

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” -Philippians 2:3-4

Picking up from my message on Christmas Eve, I’m adding Paul’s motivational advice on how to live as Christians! Paul wants us to avoid the very human tendency to put ourselves first and others second. By nature, we approach things with a “what’s-in-it-for-me?” attitude. We devise noble excuses about obligations and duties if nothing enhances our stature, pockets, or personal comfort.

You may be the exception to the rule. But in a me-first saturated generation, first thoughts tend to be: How much will putting or doing something for someone first cost me? We may have that thought run through our minds, but it’s unnecessary to follow it through or be controlled by it. That’s our fallen, sinful nature at work, and although it’s been defeated in principle, it has not, in fact, been removed from us—that complete transformation is something we look forward to in the resurrection. We’re human, and it’s best to laugh and recognize our humanness and move away from it. The more we do, the quicker we will be ready to lay our lives down for others.

Everything Paul said and did was to point us to Jesus. He expects us to do the same. There is a cost to follow Jesus. Jesus says, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62).

So Paul is encouraging us to follow the lead of Jesus, who stepped down from his exalted position in the universe to come to our world in human form and to place himself in the role of servant. We, too, should serve others. Jesus empowers us to exhibit his life to the world when we cheerfully do this.

Now, a word of clarification. Paul is assuming that we are already aware of our abilities and self-worth. Studies have proven that people are prone to have unrealistically positive assessments of their traits and abilities. However, some of us may not be able to see any positive traits in ourselves at all. When Paul says “consider others better,” he’s not saying others are better or more lovable than us. He doesn’t want us to arrive at the heresy of devaluing ourselves—believing that we are worthless worms, of no value, without meaning, and of no account.

That isn’t Christian theology. When Christians say, “I’m nothing—just a worthless ant in God’s eyes,” it’s false humility and degrades the doctrine of Creation which affirms that whatever God made is very good and has great value: “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31).

When the apostle says to consider others “better,” he wants us to prefer others—their needs, wants and interests—to our own. He’s talking about standard Christian ethics. It’s basic ethical requirements and courtesies—what I require for myself, I must do the same for my neighbor. The question we ask is, how can I enhance the lives of others? Many have needs that no one will ever know about. Let us be a spiritually sensitive church family to understand who may need a helping hand.

We shouldn’t pretend that we aren’t concerned about our needs but should pay attention to them in the light of God’s loving promise and provision for us: “Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you” (Isaiah 46:4).

When we’re focused on being fair-minded, we lose our obsession for ourselves, knowing that God is well aware of what we need and will take care of us. There is great freedom and significant relief in this as we learn to let go of our perpetual and wearisome concentration on self (anger, bitterness, envy) and, like Jesus, become the light-giving, joyful servants of all.

Isn’t that a great way to plan for the new year?