As believers, we are meant to serve others. Times of prayer and contemplation, inward reflection and personal growth are important, indeed vital, but Jesus said in Matthew 20:28, "...the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve..." He followed up that statement by saying, in John 13:15, after taking on the servant's task of washing his disciples' feet, "For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you."
We all serve in different ways, but keep in mind we are called to do mundane things well. Giving preference to others, not demanding to have our own way. Doing our jobs with joy. Smiling. Even service in these seemingly small (but extremely important ways)sometimes isn't easy. Some folks don't respond well to our good cheer. Sometimes, we may try to help someone, who either doesn't seem to want our help, or who asks for help, then displays what we think is a stunning lack of gratitude for what we do. We might decide it just isn't worth the effort because if we're not having much of an apparent impact, what's the point? If people don't want my help, why bother?
Something I read recently in "My Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers reminded me of what our motivation for service must be. "If our devotion is to the cause of humanity, we will be quickly defeated and broken-hearted, since we will often be confronted with a great deal of ingratitude from other people. But if we are motivated by our love for God, no amount of ingratitude will be able to hinder us from serving one another."
The other thing to keep in mind in considering our frustration with the actions of others is our own ingratitude. Chambers finishes his thought on the matter by saying, "Once we realize that Jesus has served us even to the depths of our meagerness, our selfishness, and our sin, nothing we encounter from others will be able to exhaust our determination to serve others for His sake."
Knowing we have done our best to serve according to God's standards and out of our love for him must overshadow any dissatisfaction we feel about the way people respond. The good we do should not be done for recognition or earthly reward; we should be willing to serve when no one else is watching and when nobody seems to even care.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
What to give up? How about Complaining?
In the Protestant church where I grew up, we did not observe Lent, so the concept was a bit foreign to me until recent years. Perhaps the most widely-practiced aspect of this season involves abstaining from certain foods or particular behaviors. The idea is to give up pleasurable activities and instead devote the time and energy usually spent in those activities focusing on our spiritual condition and repenting for spiritual failures. (To my Catholic friends and others more steeped in the traditions of Lent, I realize there is certainly more to it than this over-simplified observation.)
But to concentrate on the "giving something up for Lent" concept, here is a possible choice as to what might be something to consider: complaining. Specifically, complaining about what is happening in politics and government. As a friend of mine noted recently, there is too much time wasted expressing ugly frustration about things over which we have little direct control. (Often, those doing the complaining don't even bother to complain to legislators.) If that time of complaining was used to work toward solving local problems, then things would get fixed, never mind what's going on in Washington.
I'm not suggesting giving up expressing legitimate concerns; thoughtful discourse is not the same as complaining. I'm proposing everyone set aside participating in (and, I'll add, listening to) complaining merely for the sake of complaining, including the hateful, personal attacks and comments about those with whom we disagree. Instead, substitute compassion, kindness and brotherly love, the very things believers are called to do on a daily basis, but which seem to have fallen off the radar when it comes to politics.
Forget the "they started it" approach as an excuse to trade insults. Instead, take to heart what Mahatma Gandhi said, "be the change you want to see in the world." Giving up negative behavior is a way to feel better -- mentally, physically and spiritually -- and it is a welcome relief to those around us as well. Complaining is not as enjoyable as it seems at the time we're doing it, and it's never missed once we discover how much peace is in our lives when it's gone. If everyone gave up complaining for 40 days, we might find out it's something we don't want to start back up again. Making a permanent change for the better is an especially good outcome of the observation of Lent.
But to concentrate on the "giving something up for Lent" concept, here is a possible choice as to what might be something to consider: complaining. Specifically, complaining about what is happening in politics and government. As a friend of mine noted recently, there is too much time wasted expressing ugly frustration about things over which we have little direct control. (Often, those doing the complaining don't even bother to complain to legislators.) If that time of complaining was used to work toward solving local problems, then things would get fixed, never mind what's going on in Washington.
I'm not suggesting giving up expressing legitimate concerns; thoughtful discourse is not the same as complaining. I'm proposing everyone set aside participating in (and, I'll add, listening to) complaining merely for the sake of complaining, including the hateful, personal attacks and comments about those with whom we disagree. Instead, substitute compassion, kindness and brotherly love, the very things believers are called to do on a daily basis, but which seem to have fallen off the radar when it comes to politics.
Forget the "they started it" approach as an excuse to trade insults. Instead, take to heart what Mahatma Gandhi said, "be the change you want to see in the world." Giving up negative behavior is a way to feel better -- mentally, physically and spiritually -- and it is a welcome relief to those around us as well. Complaining is not as enjoyable as it seems at the time we're doing it, and it's never missed once we discover how much peace is in our lives when it's gone. If everyone gave up complaining for 40 days, we might find out it's something we don't want to start back up again. Making a permanent change for the better is an especially good outcome of the observation of Lent.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Assessing blame in Haiti
Even though believers are explicitly instructed not to judge others, there is a jaw-dropping amount of judgment going on within the Church. It may be human nature to hear of something bad happening to someone and wondering what that person has done wrong, but it should not be Christian thinking to assess blame and find fault. And, while there is plenty of judging of individuals going on, I am thinking specifically of Haiti, and the old tale which has been dragged out yet again: Haiti made a deal with the devil, and that is why it is poverty-stricken and now devastated by this latest disaster. I'll borrow the strongest phrase of disapproval I ever heard my father use, "That's a crock for the birds."
I won't try to elaborate about how Haiti has repeatedly been invaded, enslaved, occupied and/or burdened with debt not of its citizens' making. And, aside from that, whether or not a "deal" was ever made with any dark force may or may not even be true. But I challenge anyone to provide evidence from the New Testament that the way God works is to make a whole country suffer for the (real or imagined) past sins of a handful of people. I find nothing in the teachings of Jesus to bear that out.
On the contrary, Jesus explains in Luke 13 that eighteen people who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them were no worse than anyone else. And when his disciples inquire as to why a particular man is blind by asking, "who sinned, this man or his parents...?" Jesus said, "It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him." (See John 9:2-3) For final evidence as to the fruitlessness of trying to find a direct correlation between suffering and sin, we only have to look at what happened at Golgotha, the place where Jesus was crucified.
Our individual actions and decisions can bring us misery, but it is not for us to judge others, Haiti included, and it is beside the point to try to assess blame for what has happened there. The real fault lies in not doing what we can to help, because Jesus goes on to say in John 9:4, "We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day. . ." Then he put his words into action and healed the man of his blindness. We are not called to judge Haiti; we are called to shine the Light and help heal Haiti.
I won't try to elaborate about how Haiti has repeatedly been invaded, enslaved, occupied and/or burdened with debt not of its citizens' making. And, aside from that, whether or not a "deal" was ever made with any dark force may or may not even be true. But I challenge anyone to provide evidence from the New Testament that the way God works is to make a whole country suffer for the (real or imagined) past sins of a handful of people. I find nothing in the teachings of Jesus to bear that out.
On the contrary, Jesus explains in Luke 13 that eighteen people who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them were no worse than anyone else. And when his disciples inquire as to why a particular man is blind by asking, "who sinned, this man or his parents...?" Jesus said, "It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him." (See John 9:2-3) For final evidence as to the fruitlessness of trying to find a direct correlation between suffering and sin, we only have to look at what happened at Golgotha, the place where Jesus was crucified.
Our individual actions and decisions can bring us misery, but it is not for us to judge others, Haiti included, and it is beside the point to try to assess blame for what has happened there. The real fault lies in not doing what we can to help, because Jesus goes on to say in John 9:4, "We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day. . ." Then he put his words into action and healed the man of his blindness. We are not called to judge Haiti; we are called to shine the Light and help heal Haiti.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Who's the Servant?
I think we all agree we are called to be servants of God, and we would never say God is meant to serve us. Yet, it seems our behavior and attitudes often do not bear out this truth. Over the years, I have (during my best moments) found myself asking for less, praising more, and seeking God himself to a greater degree, realizing there is a higher purpose in prayer than seeing what we can get from above. Arriving at the place of not "asking amiss" can be a long process and may require redefining what faith means to us.
Prayer is communion with God and not our opportunity to see our heavenly Father as a magic genie, waiting to grant us unlimited wishes. Many fellowships and individuals have, thankfully, moved beyond this thinking or were never there, but the church where I grew up went through quite a long "phase" which centered around what is widely known as the "prosperity principle."
It's a big leap from realizing God loves us and has a good plan for our lives to saying we should all be driving brand-new cars and living in million dollar mansions, and if we're not, there's something wrong with us, but, at its basic level, that's what this kind of teaching conveys. (I call it being a member of the "Bless Me Club.") Even if we are beyond that level of thinking, the potential is always with us to believe it to a lesser degree.
I recently read something by Oswald Chambers, in "My Utmost for His Highest," that gave me a spiritual jolt. He quotes John 4:7, "Jesus said to her, [the Samaritan woman at the well], 'Give Me a drink.'" Chambers goes on to say, "How many of us are expecting Jesus Christ to quench our thirst when we should be satisfying Him? We should be pouring out our lives, investing our total beings, not drawing on Him to satisfy us."
Are we asking for blessings for our own exclusive desires, or so we can use them to further God's kingdom? Since we are instructed to pray, "Your kingdom come. Your will be done" and "give us this day our daily bread," it seems whatever we are given is meant to be shared with others for kingdom purposes. And beyond all else which we seek, we should at all times pray to become completely immersed in God and God alone.
He is not our servant, but he is all we need. That's a wonderful truth to absorb into our spirits, one which actually brings with it great contentment and joy. Because when that realization finally becomes clear, we know that we don't have to settle for "stuff" when we can have God himself!
Prayer is communion with God and not our opportunity to see our heavenly Father as a magic genie, waiting to grant us unlimited wishes. Many fellowships and individuals have, thankfully, moved beyond this thinking or were never there, but the church where I grew up went through quite a long "phase" which centered around what is widely known as the "prosperity principle."
It's a big leap from realizing God loves us and has a good plan for our lives to saying we should all be driving brand-new cars and living in million dollar mansions, and if we're not, there's something wrong with us, but, at its basic level, that's what this kind of teaching conveys. (I call it being a member of the "Bless Me Club.") Even if we are beyond that level of thinking, the potential is always with us to believe it to a lesser degree.
I recently read something by Oswald Chambers, in "My Utmost for His Highest," that gave me a spiritual jolt. He quotes John 4:7, "Jesus said to her, [the Samaritan woman at the well], 'Give Me a drink.'" Chambers goes on to say, "How many of us are expecting Jesus Christ to quench our thirst when we should be satisfying Him? We should be pouring out our lives, investing our total beings, not drawing on Him to satisfy us."
Are we asking for blessings for our own exclusive desires, or so we can use them to further God's kingdom? Since we are instructed to pray, "Your kingdom come. Your will be done" and "give us this day our daily bread," it seems whatever we are given is meant to be shared with others for kingdom purposes. And beyond all else which we seek, we should at all times pray to become completely immersed in God and God alone.
He is not our servant, but he is all we need. That's a wonderful truth to absorb into our spirits, one which actually brings with it great contentment and joy. Because when that realization finally becomes clear, we know that we don't have to settle for "stuff" when we can have God himself!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)