Someone once pointed out that we spend the first couple of years of a baby’s life making that tiny human think that he or she is the most important thing in the universe, and then we spend the next 20 years trying to convince him that he’s not!

While it’s good to learn from a young age that we are loved unconditionally, it is vitally important that, as we mature, we learn that life is not centered around ourselves. According to Jesus, our greatest goal should be to love God and love people, and we can’t do a good job of that if we are self-absorbed.

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”—Philippians 2:3-4.