Humility and Serving Others

Those who choose to follow the teachings of Jesus recognize the necessity of having humility.Our Lord stressed this repeatedly in what He said and how He lived.In Matthew,chapter twenty we read:"And whosoever will be great among you,let him be your servant." Then we see in Luke, chapter fourteen, where Jesus said: "For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted." These may seem like strange words for this "Me" generation.I mean,haven't we read and seen in countless articles,books and television programs that we've got to take care of ourselves first,or,we've gotta look out for number one,meaning you and me? Sometimes it's put in a gentler way,like;before you can love others you first have to love yourself.Even schools,beginning at the youngest of ages,stress building self-esteem to what can only be described as an unhealthy extreme.Consequently,it should come as no surprise that we are the most self-absorbed and self-concerned generation this country has seen.You can observe this in the way we live,the way we use our money and by our insatiable desire to be entertained.The fact that over fifty percent of all marriages end in divorce is a dubious testament to the "me first" philosophy.
The sad fact is that man, by nature, is prone to greed and self-interest.People who lack humility tend to be governed by this self-interest and possess a restlessness which is always seeking after this or that in an effort to fill a avoid that exists.Those attempting to follow Jesus' example of humility,not only consider others first, but reach out to be a help to those in need.This is because the fruit of our committment to our faith in Him,are good works.I would quickly add that these good works are something that we freely desire to do.If we look upon them as an obligation,then there is something wrong with our level of faith.
Jesus taught us to do unto others as we would want others to do unto us,and,that it is in giving,that we receive.What we gain here on earth is that peace which passes all understanding,a peace that the world and all it's riches cannot equal.May we humble ourselves and follow His example.