Pleasure Seeking

Do you see yourself as a role model?

Do you do good works because you know people will see what you do and want to emulate you?

'You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.- Matthew 5:14-16

There is a difference between showing off and showing others.

Jesus accused the Pharisees and Scribes of showing off when they prayed in public or made it obvious that they were fasting, so how do we shine our light for all to see, without feeding our own egos?

There is no way that I can do good without finding it rewarding.  I take great pleasure in feeding those who are hungry and helping people in need.

I believe we are wired that way.  Doing good is pleasurable for a reason, so that we want to do good.

Like a lamp that burns oil to produce light, we too consume energy to do our work, so why enjoy it?  And if we enjoy what we do, we will want to share it with others, letting the work we do set an example for others to follow.

On the other hand, there are times when what we do should remain private.  We certainly don't want to embarrass someone we give help to by letting everyone know.  Jesus would tell those he healed to stay silent about it, leaving it to them to tell others if they wanted to.

So it should be with us.  When we help someone and it brings us joy, we have received our reward.

If we then go and tell the world about it, we are feeding our own egos, and I think that is where we should draw the line.

So, in doing good, we are not seeking pleasure for our sake, but taking pleasure in doing what we are created to do.  And the light will shine without our help.

I guess we should get out there, then, and shine.

More to come...