New Attitude

 

You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, who though He existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied Himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature.  He humbled Himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death-even death on a cross!  Philippians 2:5-8

I was driving back home on the interstate the other day when a pick up truck that was hauling furniture dropped a coffee table off the back of the tailgate in front of my car.  I only had a few seconds to react and swerve, or I could have been in a severe accident as the car behind me was driving rather closely.   Luckily, I remembered that my car had a Cokesbury Church magnet on my back bumper or I would have probably reacted a bit more harshly (possibly with a finger gesture).  I know it was an accident as the driver did not intend to lose a piece of furniture, but my raw reaction got me thinking about why the number of "Road Rage" cases in the United States keeps growing larger and larger with every passing year.

Less than twenty-five years ago, "Road Rage" wasn't even a commonly used phrase.  So what's happened?  Are we so used to having things instantly that we have forgotten what it is like to be patient and to actually have to wait for something?  Coming from the miserable driving conditions that I became accustomed to when we lived in Atlanta, the driving conditions in Knoxville aren't really that bad.  Seriously, on a bad traffic day it only takes 20 minutes to drive across town.  Unfortunately, far too many people have no consideration for other people on the road nowadays.  Mix that together with advances in modern technology and we as a society don't understand the concept of steadfastness or patience.  I believe that some of us even have a God-complex of our own. "My schedule is the only one that matters."  "I must get to where I am going, who cares about the person I just cut off on the exit ramp?"  Sound familiar?

Take Paul's words about Jesus' attitude to heart...here is the Son of God, the One who can summon all the angels in heaven at any given moment, walking among us on this earth, going through the same struggles and trials that we all deal with to this very day.

Jesus did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped.  Even more amazing, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death on the cross! You can't make this stuff up...He was, is, and will always be the genuine article.  His attitude is the one we should all try and replicate in our own lives.  I need to remember this the next time I sit behind the wheel of my car to drive or when things are not going the way I'd like them to at home or at work, and so on and so on....imagine how different things would be if we all had Jesus' attitude!