Service

Bear with me. This is something I have been thinking a lot about lately, and have finally decided to try and put it into words. However, I cannot promise that these thoughts will be completely comprehensible as I am still mulling them over as I seek to live authentically as a Christ-follower.


Service....serving others...came so easily in Bolivia. Opportunities abounded to help those in need. From the river kids to the beggars on the side of the street to the families of the students at my school, I was able to serve in real, authentic ways. I was able to build relationships through service and I was able to fulfill true needs. 


Since moving back to the States I have not found a service "niche" and I am feeling the loss of that aspect of my life. I miss feeling like I am making a difference. Maybe this is selfish, but I do believe that when we serve the Lord uses that service to sanctify us and draw us closer to him. In some ways, we get more out of that service than the people who are being served as we are being transformed to be more and more like Christ. 


For the last two years I think I have avoided finding ways to serve by telling myself that my job teaching first grade in a tough urban school district was service enough. And while I do view teaching as a calling and I know that I am making a difference in the lives of students, I also don't think service is something that can be fit into a 9-5 work day (or rather a 7:00- 5:00 or 6:00 work day). Service must leave room for spontaneity, for sacrifice. Service is seeing a need and filling it, whether or not it fits neatly into our daily schedule. Actually, I think we are wrong to separate service and set it aside as a separate part of our life, like saying "we do service once a month, or week, or every other Tuesday" It should be such an integral part of our life that it just springs out at all times. We should approach every encounter as an opportunity for service and serve anyone with whom we come into contact. 


This is not to say there is no room for special service projects. There is nothing wrong with planning special events to serve. In fact those can be very good if they fill true needs and lead to relationships that bring people closer to the Lord. But those alone are not enough. If we relegate service to something that happens between 6-8 one night a month, then we are missing out.  It needs to be more. It needs to be a way of life. Something we dive into and let God lead the way.


So as I seek to live a more serving-ful (yes, I made up that word!) life, I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes by Frederick Buechner "The place God calls you to, is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet."  My prayer is that I can find that place and serve there with every waking breath.

The Race

My small group has begun a new book study on the book Adventures in Missing the Point, co-authored by Tony Campolo and Brian McLaren. Although we are only on chapter two, I am already enjoying this book more than I expected to.  It is a clear, concise look at areas in which we as Christians might be missing the point.  Neither author claims to have all the answers, but rather consistently brings us back to biblical truth. The first chapter was about Salvation. In the time of Jesus, the Jews missed the point of salvation because they were focused on an immediate rescue from political oppression. However, in today's world we often miss the point of salvation because we focus solely on salvation as a ticket to heaven, rather than as an immediate rescue to a new life in the immediate kingdom.

Brian McLaren illustrated this point with what he called "The Parable of the Race". It was such a clear illustration of what the Christian life often is as opposed to what it could be. In the parable, a race is advertised to help the people escape the drudgery and boredom of their lives. It is promised that everyone who starts the race will receive a great reward. On race day, several people line up at the starting line eager to begin. Others are skeptical and stand on the sidelines, waiting to see what happens. When the race begins those at the starting line take a few steps and then begin celebrating! They have started the race! They fall on their knees in gratitude. Those on the sidelines watch, confused. Finally a few decide that if no one else is going to actually run the race, then they will and so they begin running. They realize that the reward is the opportunity to run the race itself, for the race never ends and it takes them on the greatest adventure.

How many Christians do you know that have received salvation and for them, that is the end? They celebrate their rescue from hell, but never pursue the kingdom.  It is my prayer that I will never be like those people who celebrate starting the race, but rather that I will continue running all of my days. For that will be the greatest adventure...