Love in a Me-First World
I’m tired of the me-first air we all breathe. I catch it in little ways that add up—cars wedged across two parking spots, folks sliding past the line, traffic rules treated like suggestions. It’s easy to grumble (and I do), but then I look in the mirror. I guard my own time, scroll past real needs, and let convenience set my compass more than I want to admit.
It hits close to home at school events, too. At our son’s choir concert, they needed parents to help when their kids weren’t singing. I took a shift with the boys; Allison stayed an hour later to help with the girls—because, as a fine arts teacher, she knows how hard it can be to find volunteers for even one hour. That small act reminded me: love almost always costs a little inconvenience.
And I want to be honest with you. This Saturday, October 18, is our church clean-up day, and I don’t exactly want to give up a Saturday morning. We’ve got errands and kid commitments like everyone else. But I’ll be here, pruning shears in hand—because I believe leaders go first, and because I’m hungry for a better kind of different. Not louder. Not angrier. Just more loving.
The Book of Hebrews keeps whispering (sometimes shouting): there’s a better way. “Fix your eyes on Jesus” (12:2). “Consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds” (10:24). “Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have” (13:16). In other words, be different in the ways that matter most—not performatively different, but deeply loving, faithful, and resilient.
That’s the heartbeat of our new series, Counterculture (launching Sunday, October 26). We’re not chasing weird for weird’s sake. We’re learning the Jesus-way that runs cross-grain to a world of self-promotion and scarcity. To be countercultural is to choose service over cynicism, honor over outrage, presence over distraction, and generosity over fear.
And here’s the good news: we don’t do this alone. Hebrews calls us to run our race together, surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses and sustained by a Savior who knows what it is to walk against the wind.
On the first day of the new sermon series, we have the opportunity to practice that “better kind of different” . October 26 is also our Fall Fest—our big community outreach. It’s not just a party in the parking lot; it’s a living parable of the Kingdom: neighbors welcomed, kids laughing, volunteers serving, church family showing up for something bigger than ourselves.
Two gentle invitations (no guilt—just grace and options)
Clean-Up Day • Saturday, October 18: If your schedule is packed, we truly get it. If you can spare even one hour sometime that morning, it helps more than you know. Come for any part—light yard work and tidying God’s house. Bring gloves if you have them; we’ll have extras.
Fall Fest • Sunday, October 26: If you’re weary of the me-first vibe, come practice another way with us—greet a family, host a game, or help with snacks. We have short shifts, so you can serve and participate. Even a small “yes” makes a real difference.
If neither date works, there’s still a beautiful way to join in: pray for our neighbors by name as you meet them, write one note of encouragement to a volunteer or staff member, or choose a five-minute act of kindness this week. Counterculture isn’t about doing everything; it’s about doing the next loving thing.
Try this as a weekly practice:
One small reversal: do the loving thing that costs you five extra minutes.
One shared table: invite someone new to sit with you (on Sunday or at lunch).
One quiet prayer: “Jesus, set my eyes on You, not on me.”
If you’re looking for a place to belong and a way to bless, this is your on-ramp. Bring a friend who’s tired of the me-first air. Let’s trade me-first for love-first, one act at a time.
With Gratitude,
Rev. Rodney Whitfield
Senior Pastor
Aldersgate UMC