This day, this week, God is trying to once again teach me what it means to serve.
In John chapter 13, Jesus tells his disciples, "A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean." And then he washed their feet. He was telling them that they were clean (saved) and yet something more was required. They were being told to wash one another's feet. In fact, Jesus told them they would be blessed if they did these things. This conversation wasn't really all about feet. It was about serving. There is something tempting about accepting Jesus' sacrifice and believing nothing more is required of us. Of course we can't add anything to His sacrifice to gain our salvation, but once we are saved, he expects us to do what he did: Selfless Sacrifice and Service.
I realize that I may be good at serving others who I know will appreciate my efforts, but I am terrible at serving those who don't notice or who take it for granted and feel they deserve it. Yet, Jesus washed the feet of all of his disciples, even Judas who would betray him. We are not asked to serve who we want to, how we want to, or even when we feel like it. Often our service is to people who are difficult, in ways that are unrewarding, and at times that are inconvenient.
I feel called to advocate for the orphans of this world, but that doesn't mean it will be easy. It may be my passion, but it is hard. Raising children, disciplining new believers, training co-workers all require laying down your life in order to improve someone else's. Serving the world takes sacrifice - daily. Let us go about it joyfully so that we can share our master's happiness.
BE THE ONE
