“…rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.” – Phillipians 2:7 NIV
Do you like stew?
Most stews require you to add a lot of ingredients and set aside a lot of time for cooking. Your job as the chef is to wait for the ingredients to come together. The long length of time the ingredients spend in the pot is what produces that seasoned taste we know stews for. As the pot heats up, the smell of the spices, vegetables, and meat grow more potent; then we reach that threshold where everything comes together for the most savory blend.
Our mind works in a similar way except this can be for either good or evil. When we meditate on things that are pure, lovely and edifying, our spirits are enriched by God’s spirit till his nature begins to overflow from us. But when we meditate on what is going wrong or whatever is not to our liking — when we grumble — we cause bitterness, unforgiveness, and anger to grow steadily in our hearts.
You might do a great job of convincing yourself that what you think on doesn’t matter too much because you can stop whenever you want, but it’s never that easy. It’s like trying to stop a snowball already falling downhill. The more it rolls, the larger it gets and the harder it is to stop. Eventually what you set your mind on begins to overflow out of you — whether good or evil.
Grumbling makes us feel relieved and is driven from an entitlement to what we want. Grumbling makes us dwell on situations that have already left our control, frustrated about what we couldn’t achieve or receive. It may satisfy us in the moment, but it has long-term consequences.
Through God we have the power to take control of what “stews” in our mind. Our reference scripture for today — Phil. 2:7 — is one way to attack the grumbling mindset.
We can follow Jesus’ example of humility. Even though He is God in the flesh, He made himself a Servant and God later elevated Him. Model your life after how Christ lived. Make yourself a servant by doing everything as unto the Lord (Colossians 3:23).Don’t always try to have your way. Know God is in control and see everything, so let God’s will be supreme. You will love others more and enjoy peace, righteousness and joy in the Holy Spirit!
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, help me not to complain and grumble, but to love. Give me your heart so that I can always submit to your will and learn to prefer others over myself, in Jesus’ name. Amen.