The spiritual discipline of service, or putting the needs of others ahead of my own, does not come naturally to me. In fact, my tendency is to place myself upon the throne of my own heart and prioritize my own needs and desires above all else. Yet, Jesus clearly tells us to beware of this impulse and act differently. He tells us that loving God above all things and caring for those around us are the two divine directives upon which all holy living depends (Matthew 22:36–40).
In 2015, I became an elementary school teacher. Daily, I am given the opportunity to actively serve others, namely, my students. But I cannot love the people around me as God commands if I spend my energy on trying to advance my own interests. Instead, service is a means of turning to Him daily—seeking His strength, patience, and peace—if I hope to serve my students well. In this discipline, God is actively training me to become more dependent on Him and less enamored with myself.
My current position is not something I consider to be a temporary situation that I just need to “get through” on my way to something less difficult and more rewarding, or less costly to my ego and more beneficial to my sense of accomplishment. Rather, He has instructed us to “build houses” and to “plant gardens” in our current spheres of influence (Jeremiah 29:4–7). If that is indeed the case, I must begin each day pleading God’s mercy, submitting to His will, beckoning the Holy Spirit to empower me to serve others first, and then putting these things into practice. When Jesus says, “Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant” (Matthew 20:26), He’s addressing my heart’s most preeminent idol: myself.
If we subscribe to the world’s definition of greatness—some combination of influence, authority, wealth, and recognition from others—Jesus would have us reconsider what we value. These assets are by no means wrong in and of themselves, but when achieving them becomes our chief motivation, we lose sight of a foundational ethic in God’s kingdom: putting ourselves aside in favor of our neighbor (Mark 12:30–31).
For my part, any success I have in the service of my students, or anyone else for that matter, is not because of who I am or what I’ve done. It’s an act of living out who He is and what He’s doing right now, in and around me. It’s the daily practice of demonstrating my dependence on Him by assuming the role of servant instead of dedicating myself to the pursuit of my own glory.
Written by Alex Florez
Amen. Then he said to them all, if anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow me. Luke 9:23.
I shouldn’t be surprised that this is EXACTLY what I needed to read today. Thank you, Holy Spirit, for always speaking. I pray for ears to hear and a heart to obey. One thing that really spoke to me today was the part of the reading where Jesus is speaking about coming to and visiting the sick and those who are in prison. He specifically says to go to them, because they are unable to come to us. I believe this is not only referring to those physically sick or in prison, but those who are emotionally, mentally and spiritually in these situations. Lord, help me to go to them when they can’t come to me. Thank you for those who have done the same for me. ❤️
I really relate to this too, Jennifer. Giving but sometimes not seeing it being reciprocated has been hard for me lately. May we continue to pour into others- for their welfare is our welfare.
Amen Karen.
So many lessons from the scripture today! Of course the biggest being to truly LOVE our neighbors as ourselves. That can be difficult under normal circumstances, but given the current political climate of our nation, it can seem impossible sometimes. As Christians, I know we want to do that. We have a desire to love others- but when the reality of that means loving those who have completely opposite beliefs and those who are angry and those who hate and are unkind………well, that’s when we are reminded of just how much we need Jesus to do that! Without God, we can’t possibly love like that! It has to be His love in us, flowing out of us, in order for us to be able to live like that. The scripture from Jeremiah today really struck me- especially verse 7 that talks about seeking the welfare of the city where God sent them and that we should pray to the Lord on its behalf because in its welfare is our own. Wow. May we be ever before God brining our nation before Him and seeking to be part of bringing love to others and not hate. Sorry for the long post!!!! Have a great day!!!
Aw…. Thank you Tricia.
This hit me in the gut. I have the attitude of “getting through” most days with my toddlers. Lord, help me remember I am to service them and ultimately to You.
Service is a means of turning to Him daily – seeking His strength, patience and peace.