Serve and be great

Scripture:  Mark 10:42-45

⁴²Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. ⁴³Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, ⁴⁴and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. ⁴⁵For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as ransom from many.”

Observation:  Jesus instructs the apostles (and us) that those who desire to be eternally great will achieve that only by serving others. Although worldly authority is often shown by lording that authority over others and being served by others, true greatness comes from those serving others first, as instructed by the Lord.

Application:  What would the world be like if those who were power-hungry achieved success by serving? Rather than finding ways to sit back and do as little as possible, what would it be like if ambitious people turned those ambitions to serving the most, and achieve greatness in that?

And I’m not talking about serving just to gain power. Perhaps all that service of others would change selfish ambition to a joy that can only come from doing as the Lord instructs and joy in knowing you are helping others. No complaining about serving, just doing it. The greatest would be he or she who serves lovingly (not begrudgingly).

How can I transform my life to be that person, and possible inspire another to make a similar transformation?

Prayer: Thank you, Lord for this reminder of service, and for showing me that I should serve lovingly because you instruct me to serve. Guide me in finding the ways for which you designed me to serve. And awaken my heart to find true joy in service to those you intend for me to serve.