pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: serve


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Journey to Share

Readings: John 12:8a and Isaiah 43: 16-21

God parted the sea as a path to freedom for His people and as a means of destruction for their enemies.  God provided water in the dryness of the desert for their physical needs and to remind them again to trust Him.  Mary blessed Jesus by anointing Him and Jesus tempered Judas’ complaint by reminding him that the needy will always be present.

As we walk along our journey of faith, we also have experiences that grow our trust in God and some that allow us to bless others.  In the first case we learn from our trials that God is always near, that we can trust Him with all things, and that He will provide.  In the second case as we grow in our faith we come to see that we too can  anoint others and in this way share God’s blessings with them.

From these two things, our focus begins to change.  We begin to see others and their needs more clearly.  We become freer to give away to others because we gain trust that God will provide.  We come to better see needs and to understand how we can meet them as we begin to journey with Jesus alongside those in need.  Our increased awareness of the needs of others, both strangers and friends alike, deepens both our inclination and ability to help.  As we come to understand that helping carry another’s burden does not weigh us down but instead blesses us, we gain strength in our mission to others.

Verse 18 speaks of God doing a new thing.  As we grow in our trust and as our mission to those in need develops, we see more and more from a new perspective.  Our focus becomes more and more like Mary’s – seeing God’s kingdom more and the world’s less.  Seeing and responding to need builds God’s kingdom.  Offering more of ourselves shares Jesus increasingly with the world.  God seeks to do a new thing in each of us.  Can you sense it springing up?  Through our lives, may we ever bring glory to God as we strive to build His kingdom here.


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When He Calls

“Come, you who are blessed by my Father, take your inheritance…” (verse 34).  On the day you stand before the Lord, do you hope to hear those words of acceptance and inclusion?  I sure do.  But today’s parable is about how some who think they are “in” are sent away from heaven and into eternal punishment.

Evidently the filter for our eternal destination is not totally about whether or not we believe in God or Jesus.  It is not about the career we had or how much wealth, possessions, or status we accummulated.  It is not even really about if we were regular chuch attenders or consistent givers to the church.  Instead of caring about who we were or what we had, Jesus appears to be more concerned about how we live our lives – about the condition of our hearts.

In today’s parable Jesus chooses serving the poor and powerless as the filter.  The inheritance we all want went to those who fed the hungry, clothed the naked, cared for the sick, and visited the prisoner.  And moreso than if we did any of these things, Jesus is concerned with how we did them.  When one works with another in need, is it out of love and compassion, so you see them as Jesus did?  Or is one there because they have to be or because it is the ‘right thing to do’?

“Whatever you did not do to the least of these, you did not do for me” (verse 45) was Jesus’ response to those who thought they were “in” but were not.  It is not that we all have to be in full time ministy to the poor, but it is really about how we respond when God calls.  Are we willing to lovingly serve those God places before us or to give our time or gifts when they are needed?  Do we hear God’s voice speaking through the Holy Spirit?  Do we answer His call?  And most importantly, when we do answer, do we see Jesus in all we meet and in all the situations that God calls us to?

Scripture reference: Matthew 25: 31-46


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How Far?

Servant leadership is difficult.  It is pretty easy to serve, to go out and do for others.  There are lots of needs that can be met and many people who would appreciate a group of volunteers showing up to help them out.  If one is gifted with certain characteristics, then leadership can also be pretty easy.  As people rise into higher positions, we usually recognize these characteristics in the person.  Almost all leadership positions come with some level of power and authority.  Jesus warns against using this to lord one’s position over others.

Great leaders do not dominate but include others.  Great leaders do not dictate but they participate.  Great leaders have vision and drive and purpose and they spread this to those on their team.  Great leaders build up their team and keep it moving towards its goals and purposes.  If one is able to lead in this manner, power and authority tend to find them.  To be a servant as well can be difficult.

As servants we must sometimes do things we do not want to do.  As servant leaders we may have to lead others in doing these things.  Great servant leaders have a gift for bringing others along on these difficult journeys.  Jesus gave us many great examples of the leader serving and He calls us to do the same.  How far are we willing to go?  On the cross the Most High suffered and died for the lowly and sinful, for the sake of saving us.  How far will we go to save the least and the lost, the sinful and the broken?  Leaders go as far as needed.  May we go where He sends us.

Scripture reference: Mark 10: 42-45


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Who Today?

God’s voice has always been active in our world.  In the beginning He spoke and created all things.  God continued to speak to and through the prophets for thousands of years.  Next He spoke ad Jesus, the “exact representation of His being”.  God continued to speak through the words of the apostles and disciples.  God’s voice was preserved in the Bible and He continues to speak today through this living word.  God continues to lead and guide each of us today.

As Christ was the exact representation of God, we as Jesus’ followers are called upon to grow in our faith to become exact representations of Christ.  Our journey to becoming just like Christ is one we will never accomplish in our human lifetime but we are called to grow to be more and more and more like Christ.

As we read and study the Bible, the word that stands out more and more is ‘love’.  It is in what I consider the ‘big’ passages: for God so loved the world… love the Lord your God with all your… love one another as I first loved you….  Jesus set us the example by offering love to all He met.  Then He called us to follow.

For many non-believers today we can read or quote scripture to them all day long and it will not matter.  They are just words.  It will only be when our love becomes an action and we selflessly give of ourselves to minister to their needs that they will begin to catch a glimpse of Christ.  Through love hearts will be changed.  Lives will be made new.  So, who will you love today?

Scripture reference: Hebrews 1: 1-4


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Alone Time

Life is busy.  When we have a slice of free time outside the requirements of work or school and the necessity if eating and sleeping, we have a myriad of choices about what to do with that time.  We can fill our ‘free time’ with things that are good for us or with things that are not.  For the interests or activities that we find valuable we usually schedule them in so that we do not miss out on them.

Time alone with God should be one of these priorities.  To find a space in the early morning or just before going to bed or someplace in between is so important to our faith.  Each day we must carve out time to read and reflect on God’s word and to spend time in prayer.  Through these two means of grace we draw closer to God and become more open to the Holy Spirit’s working in our lives.

This ‘alone time’ with God also serves to open us up to the world.  As our eyes, head, and heart become more and more in tune with God, we see both His presence in the world better and hear His call to meet the needs of others more clearly.  Through these we see and respond to the needs more readily.  We live and interact in the world as a follower of Jesus Christ.

Time dedicated to God is a commitment.  We are called to live in covenant relationship with God.  If time with God is a “when I have time” type of thing, one never seems to find the time.  Yet nothing in this life is more important than daily time alone with God.  This time is an absolute blessing.  May you be blessed every day!

Scripture reference: 2 Samuel 5: 9-10


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Becoming Less

Could you eat today on just $4?  How about eating for a week on just $28?  I cannot imagine having only $28 to spend at the grocery store and being able to survive for a week, nevermind for weeks on end.  Yet this is roughly the amount people living at the poverty level has to eat on.  It is tough down there at the lowest economic end of society.  And it is hard to relate to from where most of us sit.  For the most part, those who live like this are not in our churches.

In the faith community described in Acts 4, it is a radical vision by today’s norms.  People gathered together daily, shared what they had, no one was in need.  Today, within some faith communities, there is help offered to one another.  Perhaps we bring meals over to a family during a difficult time or we help a single, older person move into a new apartment.  But when the need is a little greater, do we look around at our abundance and ask “what can I sell?” so that we can give some financial assistance to one in need?

Our society is titled so that the well-off gain more and more while those without continue to struggle.  As a universal church, could we together make a difference in society?  Could our voices united speak to correcting some of these issues on a systemic level?  Could our individual churches reach out into disadvantaged areas and partner with those who are struggling?  Can we mentor, teach, support, assist, and meet basic needs of life?

The answer to all of these questions is the same: yes.  If we follow Jesus we love all of creation, including all of our neighbors.  If we truly hear His call, we too are willing to become a little less so another can become more.

Scripture reference: Acts 4: 32-35


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Each and Every

Imagine for a moment what it would be like to wash someone else’s feet.  Imagine doing it in a time when people wore sandals at best, all roads were made out of dirt, and animals shared the roads with people.  The washing of feet was usually something you did for yourself.

Yet on this day of Holy Week Jesus knelt at each disciple’s feet and washed their feet.  And I bet He did it slowly and carefully.  It was no “drip a little water and dab with the towel” kind of washing.  He wanted them to see how invested He was in this activity.

It must have been awkward for th disciples.  It must have seemed odd to have their leader and teacher kneel down to cleanse their feet of the dirt and crud of the day.  His messages were clear: this cleansing makes them even more of a part of Him and it sets them an example of what it means to truly serve one another in love.  And take note: there is no mention of Jesus skipping over Judas’ feet.  Jesus mentions earlier in the passage that one among them is unclean, so He knows the betrayal in Judas.  Knowing Jesus, He probably took extra care with cleaning Judas’ feet.

Jesus’ teaching here in John 13 is two-fold for us.  First, we are to be willing to serve one another in whatever way we can.  It may be washing feet or offering a warm meal or being on the committee or simply being there to listen.  Second, we are to offer Christ’s love to any and all.  He did not skip over Judas.  We are not to skip over anyone either.  Each and every person is child of God, worthy of His and our love.  And maybe, just maybe, those we are least inclined to serve and those who need it most.

Scripture reference: John 13: 1-17and 31b-35


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Answering “Yes”

Elisha is a most faithful friend to Elijah.  As the time has come for Elijah to be taken into heaven, Elijah and many other prophets tells Elisha to not follow along.  But Elisha remains close to his friend right up to the very end.  He held no fear for himself.  He gave no thought to his own well-being.  It is a truly sacrificial relationship.

How many of our relationships have this sacrificial component to them?  Maybe those relationships with your spouse or children?  Maybe those with a really close friend?  Maybe with Christ?

We are not often asked to walk into a dangerous situation on our own accord.  We may find ourselves in the midst of a good friend’s emotional or relational crisis that is uncomfortable, but we are in no danger.  In our earthly, personal relationships we seldom find ourselves in a place where we are called to truly sacrifice for another.

But there are opportunities to sacrifice.  We could forego sitting with our friends at lunch and instead sit with the one who always eats alone.  We could give of our time to the one who is hard to love yet still needs a friend.  We could assist the fiercely independent one who is really struggling at work.  God provides us with chances to sacrifice if we have open eyes and willing hearts.  May we be able to answer ‘yes’ when Jesus asks, “for the least of these?”

Scripture reference: 2 Kings 2: 1-12


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Willingly Led

Has God ever disrupted your plans?  Have you ever been cruising along and all of  sudden you are someplace else or doing something else?  When the angel Gabriel visits Mary and announces that she has found favor with God and will give birth to Jesus, her life takes an unexpected turn.

For us, these turns can be bad – like the loss of a job or the onset of a sudden illness.  Or they can be good turns – a new relationship or the opportunity to share the good news.  In either case, the great thing is that our loving God is with us in both the good and the bad plus every place in between.

In Mary’s case she had no choice concerning her change in direction.  Often times we have no choice either.  But often times we do have a choice.  Sometimes they are small detours that make a big difference in the life of another person.  If our eyes are seeking and our heart is open, God will provide us with opportunities to bless others.  May we be willingly lead.

Scripture reference: Luke 1: 26-30


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Hand in Hand

Joshua asks the people twice if they will indeed serve God alone.  He wants to be sure they understand the importance of their decision and that they are sure about it.  After two positive affirmations, Joshua tells them to “throw away foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to God and obey him” (verse 24).  He knows that if they hang onto those idols, eventually they will turn back to them.  Joshua knows the importance of relying on God alone in the pursuit of a life of love, mercy, justice, and compassion.

We too face the same choice.  While we sometimes have physical idols like that new car or the latest fashion, most of our idols are things like pride, judging, envy, gossip, and control. We too must work at ‘throwing’ them out.  But we cannot do it alone.  Only with God’s help do we begin to stand a chance against these idols.

As we choose God alone to serve, we are choosing to enter into a covenant relationship with God.  In this relationship we choose to serve God alone and to love God above all else.  For His part, God strengthens, encourages, and enables us to grow closer to Him through prayer, study, worship, fellowship, and other encounters with Him.  God also leads us to serve, give to, care for, and love others as an extension of that loving, covenant relationship that we have with Him.  Loving God and loving neighbor just go hand in hand.  Loving God and loving neighbor are two greatest calls upon our lives.

Scripture reference: Joshua 24: 19-25