75. Life-Maxing? No, No, No...Try This Instead

We're surrounded by voices telling us to maximize ourselves: our looks, productivity, wealth, health, status, experiences, and potential.

But Jesus offers a radically different path to maximum life.

In this episode, John Ortberg explores the “self-maximizer” inside us and contrasts it with John the Baptist's famous words: “He must increase; I must decrease.”

The paradox of God's kingdom is that abundant life doesn't come from making ourselves bigger. It comes as we loosen our grip on ego, reputation, and self-promotion and give ourselves to love and service.

Want to live life to the max?

Try a little less of yourself.

In this episode: life-maxing • John the Baptist • Philippians 2 • the self-maximizer • Psalm 146 • abundant life

#JohnOrtberg #SpiritualFormation #Psalm146 #AbundantLife #Jesus #ChristianFaith

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00:00 How to Maximize Your Life
 00:29 Welcome to the Age of Life-Maxing
 00:50 Looks, Status & Productivity Maxing
 01:08 What's Wrong With Self-Maxing?
 01:34 God Is Actually Into Abundance
 02:04 Biblical Maxers
 02:26 Absalom: The Looks-Maxer
 02:42 Five Pounds of Hair?!
 03:04 He Maxed Himself to Death
 03:26 The Wealth-Maxer & Bigger Barns
 03:47 Solomon Maxes Pleasure
 04:19 The Original God-Maxing Temptation
 04:30 The Self-Maximizer Inside You
 04:54 “My First Job Is to Realize My Potential”
 05:22 Is Commitment Keeping a Sucker's Game?
 05:48 The Self-Maximizer vs. Commitment
 06:02 What's in It for Me?
 06:25 When Self Becomes the Center
 06:53 The Ego-Driven Pastor
 07:14 The New Org Chart: Bigger Me
 07:38 There Is Another Way
 08:02 John the Baptist Starts Losing Followers
 08:24 You Need to Max!
 08:45 The Friend of the Bridegroom
 09:04 “He Must Increase, I Must Decrease”
 09:33 Jesus Minimizes Himself
 10:10 Meaning Is the New Maxing
 10:38 How to Min to Max Today
 11:05 Give, Encourage, Listen & Serve
 11:26 Less Ego, More Life
 11:54 Life to the Max
 12:03 John Forgot the Psalm 😂
 12:22 Psalm 146: God's Kind of Greatness
 12:43 Bonus Material