A Selfish Symphony?
Only through submission, sacrifice, and serving can the concerto of life and relationship be sweet.
by Max Lucado
Self-promotion. Self-preservation. Self-centeredness. It's all about me! Everyone told us it was all about us, didn't they? Weren't we urged to look out for number one? Find our place in the sun? Make a name for ourselves? We thought self-celebration would make us happy.
But what chaos this philosophy creates. What if a symphony employed such an outlook? Can you imagine an orchestra with an "It's all about me" approach to music? Each artist clamoring for self-expression. Tubas blasting nonstop. Percussionists pounding to get attention. The cellist shoving the flutist out of the center-stage chair. The trumpeter standing atop the directors' stool tooting his horn. The sheet music is disregarded. The director is ignored. What do you have but an endless tune-up session!
Harmony? Hardly.
Happiness? Are the musicians happy to be in the group? Not at all. Who enjoys contributing to a cacophony?
You don't. We don't. We were not made to live this way. But aren't we guilty of doing just that?
No wonder our homes are so noisy, businesses so stress-filled, government so cut-throat and harmony so rare. If you think it's all about you and I think it's all about me, we have no hope for a melody. We've chased so many skinny rabbits that we've missed the fat one: the God-centered life.
What would happen if we took our place and played our parts? If we played the music the Maestro gave us to play? If we made His song our highest priority? Would we see a change in families? We'd certainly hear a change. Less, "Here is what I want!" More, "What do you suppose God wants?"
What if a businessman took that approach? Goals of money and name-making, he'd shelve. God-reflecting would dominate.
And your body? Ptolemistic thinking says, "It's mine, enjoy it." God-centered thinking acknowledges, "It's God's, respect it."
Talk about a healthy shift. Life makes more sense when we accept our place. The God-centered life works. And it rescues us from a life that doesn't.
Max Lucado is pulpit minister of Oak Hills Church of Christ in San
Antonio, Texas, and the author of 37 books since 1985. His popularity as an author is evidenced by the fact that at one
time he had three top ten best sellers simultaneously. Lucado has won six Gold Medallion Awards, and served as general
editor of the New Century Version The Inspirational Study Bible, a so-called "everyday language" version. Lucado's
15-minute radio program, UpWords, is heard daily in 47 states on more than 1,000 stations.
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