How to Support Each Other - Philippians 2:1-4

2:1-4 - So even though the Philippian saints are given the gift of the gospel, sometimes, that requires suffering for the sake of the cause. But Paul reminds them “if there be therefore any consolation in Christ,” that suffering can bring joy and love and unity with “ye be likeminded.” So there is a built in support system with others who are also enduring for the sake of the gospel, they can build each other up in faith and confidence. He tells them that to receive and provide this support, they must “in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.” The IM quotes Elder H. Burke Peterson as teaching, “A selfless person is one who is more concerned about the happiness and well-being of another than about his or her own convenience or comfort, one who is willing to serve another when it is neither sought for nor appreciated, or one who is willing to serve even those whom he or she dislikes. A selfless person displays a willingness to sacrifice, a willingness to purge from his or her mind and heart personal wants, and needs, and feelings. Instead of reaching for and requiring praise and recognition for himself, or gratification of his or her wants, the selfless person will meet these very human needs for others.” This hit me hard because I’m really struggling with someone that I do not like, and I used to do things for her even though I knew that she either would not notice or think that she deserves this kind of subservience from me. I have stopped doing that for a while now because I’ve been having my own struggles, but reading this reminded me of the saying that I like to live by, “you serve those you love, and you come to love those you serve.” This motto has served me well for many years and I really need to pick it up again because I have no business being angry with people who only act hostile towards me because of their own insecurities. I also think it’s important to mention part of that quote that talks about fulfilling the “very human need” in others for praise, recognition, and gratification of his or her wants. Does that mean we must give everyone everything they want all the time? Of course not, Heavenly Father doesn’t do that for us, but he does give up good gifts. Notice too that it doesn’t say needs. I don’t know if that was purposeful, but it seems to me that gratification of needs doesn’t really go together, gratification seems to have a connotation of extravagance or of frivolity, or basically something that is not strictly confined to the very basic level of necessity and survival. When people receive things that they don’t need to survive, but is something that they want, they feel special, like you not only took the time to find out what they wanted, but also used your own resources to fulfill that completely unnecessary desire. It makes them feel like they are worthy of sacrifice. It’s empowering. The other part, praise and recognition is important to, because it’s easy for us to take praise for something, even if we didn’t do it, but giving credit where it’s due or even highlighting another person’s efforts, even if they were minimal means a big deal to them because it demonstrates just how much you value their input and their assistance. They might not have made a huge difference, but surely they made A difference with their efforts. Not only can we give that praise and recognition, but we can also give the spotlight from us to them so that others can recognize them too. Again, it’s about making them feel special and worthy of good things and words.