©Laurie Pace Graphics One Design 2026
Celebrating Life
Oil on Canvas SOLD by Laurie Pace
Self-Interest vs. Selflessness — A New Year’s Perspective
The start of a new year naturally turns our focus inward. Goals are set. Resolutions are made. We ask ourselves what needs to change, what we want to improve, and what we hope to gain in the year ahead.
None of that is wrong. Reflection has value. Growth matters. But quietly, almost unnoticed, culture often nudges the question in one consistent direction: What’s in it for me?
That question has slowly shaped the way relationships are viewed—evaluated by usefulness, convenience, or personal benefit. When relationships stop meeting expectations, disappointment follows, and detachment feels justified.
How Culture Shapes Our Thinking
We live in a time that rewards self-focus. Personal fulfillment, personal peace, personal success. Relationships can become transactional rather than relational—maintained only as long as they serve our needs.
Scripture calls us to something different:
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”
Philippians 2:3–4
Selflessness does not erase the self, but it does reorder priorities. It shifts the heart from consumption to contribution.
God’s Higher Calling
Jesus consistently modeled a way of living that ran counter to cultural instinct. He loved without calculating return. He served without demanding recognition. He gave without measuring cost.
“Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.” Matthew 20:26
Selflessness is not weakness. It is strength rooted in security—knowing our worth is not dependent on what we gain from others, but on who we are in God.
A New Year, A Better Question
As a new year begins, perhaps the better question is not “What’s in it for me?” but “How can I love well?” Not “What do I deserve?” but “What has God entrusted to me?”
Selflessness does not mean tolerating harm or ignoring boundaries. It means approaching relationships with humility, grace, and a willingness to serve rather than consume.
Reflection
Self-interest narrows the heart. Selflessness enlarges it. When guided by God, selflessness becomes an act of worship—reflecting His love in a world trained to look inward. Elle
• self-interest vs selflessness • New Year Christian reflection • faith and relationships • humility in relationships • God’s calling to serve
Laurie is an international artist, her paintings are collected in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Germany, DuBai, Portugal, Italy, France, Germany, the UK, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Poland, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, St Thomas, Romania, Greece, Croatia, and Ecuador.
© Graphics One Design 2025
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