Don't Be Selfish

Richelle Alessi:
You're listening to my Morning Devotional podcast, episode 1458. Today's devo is called Don't Be Selfish.

Voice Over:
Hey there. We're the Alessies, a ministry family working together in our church in Miami, Florida. And if you're like us, when days get busy and to do lists get longer, it can be hard to find devotional time. That's why we've partnered with our friend Allison to produce a five minute daily dose of heaven. This is the My Morning Devotional podcast.

Richelle Alessi:
Good morning everybody and happy Wednesday. I hope that you are enjoying the weather wherever you are. Here in Miami is a beautiful like 50, 60 degrees. And we're taking it because it's never like this. It's always so hot. And I mean, I love Miami, I love the sunshine of Miami, but I'm grateful for a couple of days of this beautiful weather. I'm even wearing this, this big jacket because I only get to wear it when I'm out of Miami, but I can get to wear in Miami now. And so I hope that wherever you are, the weather's not too cold.

Richelle Alessi:
But let us know, where do you live? Is it really, really cold where you live? Is it not cold at all? Let us know. We want to know. Miami is blessed right now. And we're taking it because we don't take this often, but I don't think I mentioned it. My name is Rachelle Alessi and I get to be your host this week. And I'm in the month of February. I wanted to hit a couple of lessons that I the Bible has taught in marriage and how to be better. But we can use these lessons in any relationship we have.

Richelle Alessi:
And so if you're not married, don't turn this off. I promise you it's still going to bless you. And today I want to read from Philippians 2, 3, 4. And it says, do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourself. That each of you look not only to his own interest, but also to the interest of others. And this verse is so straightforward. It's not a sweet written verse. It's telling you exactly what we need to do, which basically is humble yourself.

Richelle Alessi:
And that's why I call this don't be selfish. I was like, there's no other way I can title this. The Bible's basically telling me, don't be selfish. And I have a funny story for you guys today. Today, my husband and I have been looking for a new home now for quite some time. It's been a Little bit over a year. And we are looking for a new home just as we are growing our family. I'm currently pregnant with my second, and I have a boy, and I'm pregnant with another boy.

Richelle Alessi:
And my first boy, Marino, he's just. He's huge. He's just a big boy. And I'm thinking my second born now is going to be the same. And so I was like, I need a house with space where these boys can run, because they're. I already see it. They're going to be big boys. And, you know, when it came to the look of this house and what we're still trying to look for, I had my list of the things that were top priority for me.

Richelle Alessi:
I wanted a big kitchen. I wanted a certain amount of rooms. I needed the living room to look this way. And. And it was all the things that I wanted in this house. And my husband is so easygoing. He is truly the best. And he always was like, I want to get you the house you want.

Richelle Alessi:
And I kept hearing that, and I'm thinking, I have the best husband. Thank you so much. So here's the things that I want, right? So I had the list of the things that I wanted. And I remember we found this house that my husband really liked. And. And when we got there, I was like, this house doesn't have ha. Doesn't have, like, two of the things that I want. So why are you excited about this house? I don't understand.

Richelle Alessi:
And he was really not fully in love with the house, but he has. He had. He had seen so much potential with a home, and it was the home that he had liked the most. And I'm thinking, like, how can he, like, does he not remember the things that I. I want the big kitchen and the rooms and the big hallways, and I am rehearsing and I'm even arguing with him of like, why do you like this home? And he's telling me, because the yard, look at the trees. We can plant trees here. And he is just obsessed with gardening and back farm. Like, what's it called? I don't even know.

Richelle Alessi:
But, like, there's a more manlier term apparently, but it's basically gardening and trees and plants, and he's just amazing at it. And he just saw so much potential in that yard to build that for our family, to have trees, to have beautiful plants in our yard. And he was seeing that. But all I could see was the things that I wanted and my interests and the things that I had pictured for a home. And I'M going back and forth with him. And I didn't understand. And the reason I couldn't see that is because I was so blinded by my interests. And the Bible here tells me, and the Lord convicted me through this verse right here, that I can't do things selfishly or with selfish ambition or conceit, and I cannot put my needs above others.

Richelle Alessi:
I needed to realize that as much as I had a dream home, my husband had a dream life for his family as the head of our household. And that my kitchen could not be more priority than the dream he had for our yard. And I had to give the house a chance because he saw something I didn't see. And that was the beautiful thing about our relationship and how we work together, that sometimes you think what you see is the most important thing. But your spouse or your friend or your parent might be seeing something you don't. And they might be more right than you think you are. And so I learned that when we look forward to our next home, that was not the house for us. We came to a mutual decision.

Richelle Alessi:
It was not. But now when I walked into a home looking, I'm not just thinking of the things that I want. I'm thinking of the things that my husband has said he wants in at home. And I almost want to make those priority. If that house has some of those things that my husband wants, then that says that's a great option for me because my husband would be happy there and vice versa. So I learned that through this verse, the Bible taught me I could not be selfish and I needed to care about what my husband wanted. And since then, it's been a much better, much easier journey as we still look through. And I can't wait till we find our home, because I believe the Lord is gonna bless us with something that is for us, and it's gonna make him happy and me happy.

Richelle Alessi:
But I first need to put his needs and what he desires first before myself. So let's pray today. Dear Father God, thank you so much for the convictions and the truth that you bring through your word. Father, thank you for showing us that power. Putting our needs above others is not the right thing to do, because it's not what you did on that cross. Father, you laid your life down so we could have a better life. Father, you were great in heaven, but you came down so we could live a good life. So as your children, we need to make sure that we exemplify that in this area.

Richelle Alessi:
So I pray that you will guide us and show us how we could be better. How? We can show care and love love through the way that we treat our relationships and as we put others needs before ours because we know that's the right thing to do. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

Voice Over:
So there you have it. Your 5 minute daily dose of heaven. Thank you so much for tuning in today. We pray these devotionals empower you to take on your day. If you found value in this devotional, share it with a friend, leave a comment or review for us on the app you're using right now. Until tomorrow. We pray that your latte is strong, but your love for Jesus is stronger.