MVPs (most valued players) not VIPs

Administrator July 16, 2026 2 2

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Philippians 2: 1-4 (NIV-UK)

2 Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”

When I was reading this, ironically, a phrase came to my mind: “Imitation is the best form of praise.” You can imagine a wee boy or girl in his or her room, who stares up into the posters that are hanging above their bed and just gazes in amazement. These posters would be of their own football or sport idols, and you can imagine them saying: “When I grow up, I just want to be like them!”

Now when we come across the Gospels, do we have the same eyes as a young boy or girl who wants to be just like their idol when we look to Christ? Not in the sense that we can perform the same exact miracles or to be Christ himself - but when we see his compassion, generosity, humbleness, reaching out - do we wish to be like that? That, my friends, is what people call being ‘Christlike’.

God gave his son as a blueprint of what it means to value the people around us. Indeed, every time we see Jesus reach out to the most marginalised, forgotten-about and oppressed, it becomes for us a new and exciting challenge to change our frame of mind and to let faith flourish in tangible ways.

Take a moment this week to just look at the people around you and say (imagining that you are all part of one big football team): “There’s my number 11, he or she seems not to be on good form, let me reach out and see if they need a bit of an uplift or a good chat?”. Through that, we can develop and cultivate a heart that is always set on making sure the squad is flourishing and not stuck suffering on their own. When we do this, God delights and the Son smiles!

Prayer:

Gracious God, as we love our fellow players - with all of the gifts and potential they have, given by you - we recognise how you love us for our gifts and potential. Help us never to seek the spotlight for ourselves, but instead to celebrate the successes of others, to encourage those who are struggling, and to put the needs of our teammates before our own. Give us hearts that reflect the humility of Christ, who came not to be served but to serve. Amen.