In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.     (Philippians 2:5-7) NIV

When our kids were teenagers, there was no greater battle than the war of who got to ride in the passenger seat of the car. We would even have to assign whose week it was just to avoid conflict. You see, whoever was riding shotgun, reigned supreme, because they were in charge of the music on the radio and even the temperature inside the car. Riding shotgun meant you were king (or queen) of the car. Everyone else was beneath you.
Thinking about it now, we are not so different in our lives. We all want to ride shotgun in life. We shape our days around selfish questions such as: What do I want? What is best for me? What can I get out of this? While we feel that being in charge of our lives will lead to happiness, selfishness often snowballs into impatience, jealousy, and discontentedness, giving us less of a life than we had hoped for. We can never get enough, be enough, or have enough on our own.
We weren’t made to serve ourselves. We were made in the image of Jesus, the ultimate Servant. When we give up “riding shotgun” and invite Jesus to order our thoughts, our desires, and our actions, we start to become like Him: selfless, empathetic, caring, loving, thoughtful, generous. That is just the kind of snowball effect that fills the heart with joy.

Faith Step:     Shape your day with a selfless attitude. Invite Jesus to order your day, going out of your way to care for those around you. Get ready for some joy!