DEVOTION - Day 16

Philippians 2:3 (New International Version)

3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,

I had to read this verse a few times before I really grasped its meaning. I mean, I understand that we should humble ourselves and think of and value others higher than ourselves, but what did the first part of this verse mean? I believe that every part of every verse has significance, so I knew there had to be nuggets of truth here somewhere…

So, my first goal was to figure out what Paul meant by “selfish ambition.” He says that we should “do nothing out of” it. Then it hit me. How often do we do things because it is going to put us in a better position? Think about it.

When you are trying to decide on where to get that part-time, summer job – do you think to yourself “where can I make the most money and work the best hours” or do you think “where can I work that I will be able to serve the most people and share my faith with others”? Or, when you are trying to make your college choice – are you thinking “what college is ranked highest and has the best dorms and nightlife” or do you think “where can I go to get an education so I can change the world and make Jesus more famous”?

It’s easy in most major life decisions to get caught up in the WIIFM syndrome – What’s In It For Me? The promotion at work, the friends that I have, the future I’m planning for myself. But, doesn’t this Scripture call us to do better than that. I see that it tells to make our ambitions God’s ambitions and our goal with our future should be to “value others above” ourselves.

The next thing that I had to figure out was the phrase “vain conceit.” To me, this is the opposite of humility. In other words, you’re not just conceited, you have vain conceit. Here’s what I mean. Conceit means that you think highly of yourself and you almost have an excessive appreciation in an unhealthy way. But, someone can be conceited and it could be based on a factual part of them. For example, I could be highly intelligent and could be conceited about that. But, “vain conceit” is different.

“Vain conceit” means that the conceitedness that you have is worthless and has no value. In other words, it’s not true. So, what areas of your life do you think higher of yourself than you ought to – both with things that are true about your abilities, skills, looks, etc., but also in areas that are not true about you? Where do you consider yourself better than others?

For me, I struggle more with the selfish ambition than the vain conceit. I often make decisions that have my best interests in mind and keep me in my comfort zone. Now, I wonder what my life would be like if I really considered others when I make major life decisions. I mean, what if I looked for my next job or promotion based on how many opportunities I would have to share my faith with others?

Today, pray for God to show you the areas where you have selfish ambition or vain conceit. Ask for forgiveness in those areas and ask Him to give you a heart to truly change them. Finally, seek God’s will for your future and pray for a renewed humility in your life.