The “Me Disease”
Like a deadly virus, the disease of self-centeredness permeates our culture. From the driver who blatantly cuts us off in traffic to the friend who talks only about her kids, her job, her everything, we’re saturated with symptoms of the “Me Disease.” The symptoms are rude behavior, selfish conversations and sheer indifference.
The deterioration in our society can be traced to decades of feeding the needs of the “me generation” that lives by the maxim, “I can do whatever I want as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone.” Unfortunately, the “me” attitudes aren’t confined to secular society. Even many Christians quickly claim their “rights” when they’re offended.
The antidote to this malady is found in today’s Scripture passage: “Those who live should no longer live for themselves.” But it doesn’t stop there. We are instructed to live “for him who died . . . and was raised again.” No higher price could have been paid to provide us with a life worth living.
So how do we follow this command in our busy and self-involved lives? How do we live for others—and, therefore, for Jesus Christ—rather than living for ourselves? We cannot physically anoint his feet with oil as the woman in Luke 7:46 did. And it isn’t as if our Lord needs anything; he owns “the cattle on a thousand hills” (Psalm 50:10). The divine prescription for the “Me Disease” is this: Jesus said, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40).
You live for Jesus when you take soup and muffins to a shut-in. You live for Jesus when you watch your neighbor’s toddlers so she can run errands. You live for Jesus when you dare to look into the eyes of the down-and-out with respect and dignity. You live for Jesus when you speak up for the poor and stand up for justice. Today may our prayer be “to cease living for me and live only for Thee.”
Reflection
1. What causes you to become overly focused on your own life rather than looking out for the needs of others?
2. How will becoming less self-involved help you better live for Jesus Christ?
3. On whom can you shower God’s love today?
