During the World Race, I have been challenged to speak over
myself who God says that I am. I have multiple lists of Bible verses that say
who I am as a believer. At first, I tried reading through the list each
morning. After a few days of repeating the list they became meaningless words.
I decided my approach needed to change, so I have been choosing just one for
the day and focusing on it all day long. On Monday, My verse was John 15:15: “I
no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s
business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned
from my Father I have made known to you.” I’ve heard this many times,
but I prayed that today this would really mean something to me. Then, throughout
the day I repeated this verse and reminded myself that I am not a servant, but
Christ’s friend.
anyone would like to help in the garden. A group of us went out to pick all the
vegetables and remove all the plants. After about 7 minutes of working, my
teammate Lisa said, “What if we were
slaves and this was what we did all day for 30 years?”
that I’m not His servant, but instead His friend. I began to recap the years
I’ve spent serving God. All the mission trips, all the outreach, and all the
times I did things that normally I wouldn’t but was willing to do in God’s name. I
pondered even more about how many times I’ve said, “I’m serving God” or “I am a
missionary, doing God’s work, serving Him wherever He leads me.”
I keep thinking about the verse and the words Christ said.Then it hit me; I could garden as God’s friend. I could be helping a friend by
gathering these tomatoes and preparing the garden for the winter. I could STOP serving God with my life and be His friend. I could love others
because they are friends of my friend Jesus and I love Him. Rather than an
attitude of service toward God, trying to repay Him for all that He has done
for me; I could act as His friend.
Let me tell you, Jesus makes a great friend. My friend,
Jesus, has done so many wonderful things like listen whenever I need to talk,
comforted me when I’m sad or upset, rejoiced with me when I’m happy, accepted
me for who I am without judgment, and encouraged me. He is patient, kind and
does not boast or envy; He’s not proud, rude or self-seeking; He does not get
easily angered or keep record of wrongs; He rejoices in the truth; He always
protects, always trusts, always hopes and always preservers; His love never
fails. Who wouldn’t want to help this friend out in a garden? Who wouldn’t be
willing to get their hands dirty for Him? Who wouldn’t want to do Him a favor?
Who wouldn’t want to tell others about this amazing friend they have?
I am not God’s
servant; I am His friend!
