It was a perfect day to go ice skating.

Donald and his sister Kate decided that they would go to the local lake and spend a few hours skating with their friends. However, the family only had one pair of skates. Upon their arrival, Donald insisted that his sister go first while he watched.

A stranger noting this seeming act of kindness said, “You were gracious, son, to let your sister skate before you did. Not many young men would do that.”

“Thanks very much,” he answered, “but I just wanted to make sure the ice was thick enough to skate on.”

Most of us would consider Donald as being “self-centered.” But for the Christian, it is more than being self-centered – it is being “off-centered.”

Paul reminds us that the Christian is to be “other-centered.” To do this we must become sensitive to the needs of others. We must seize every opportunity to help support those who are struggling in their walk with the Lord. We must always behave in a way that encourages others and share the strength that God has given us.

We must always remember that our salvation is not earned by doing good deeds. However, we must never forget that our salvation is inseparably connected to Christian responsibility and therefore strive to set a good example for others.

Prayer: Lord, help me to consider what I might do to when I see others who may be having a difficult time with life. Open my eyes to see, my hands to serve and my prayers to support those for whom You died. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:24 Let no one seek his own, but each one the other’s well-being.

A family had only one pair of skates, and the twins went skating.

A stranger said to the boy, “You were kind, son, to let your sister have first go with the skates.”

“Thanks,” he answered, “but I just wanted to see if the ice was thick enough to skate on.”

There was a self-centered boy. And he was off-centered, wasn’t he?

The selfish person cuts away the ice from under his own feet, and he prepares his own watery grave. Every time he does a selfish thing, he pushes himself a little lower into the grave.

The Living Bible says, “Don’t think only of yourself. Try to think of the other fellow, too, and what is best for him.

Prayer: Save me, Father from selfishness and sin. All through today help me to think far less of myself and far more of others, and to find my happiness in making Thee and others happy: in Christ. Amen.