I am a Christian…
Which means I am to be like Christ.
Christ was a servant…
Which means He put others before Himself.
Matthew 20:26-28
"Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant and whoever wants to be first must be your slave. Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
For me this is not easy and to be honest I have not been so good at it. I think of how I served back home.
Serving in my church: I served when it was convenient for me and when it looked like something I might enjoy doing.
Every now and then someone would ask me to do something I didn't sign up for. I reluctantly would say yes. Surprisingly, it was those moments that I was blessed the most.
The moments that were inconvenient the moments that were actually a bit of a sacrifice were the times that God had divine appointments for me to not only give but to recieve the joy that came from my giving.
As most of you may know I am a hair stylist. In Moldova I did a few haircuts. No problemo!
But in Romania…… I'll just say this was my first time cutting 9 peoples hair within a 4 hour time period. At the salon we usually cut that many in one day or possibly even less people than that.
The pastor of the church here had the idea that we have one spa day for the ladies of Dragonesti. This one spa day turned into me cutting hair for women and men for 3 days.
On day one I thought I was going to snap. I thought to myself: What is wrong with me? Why am I getting so frustrated and why am I not serving in a way that I know satisfies the Lord, myself, and those around me.
Then, I took a moment sat down, watched and listened.
It was like a light bulb turned on. I noticed that it was my attitude. My attitude in serving not only affected me but it affected those I was serving.
It's easy to have a good attitude serving when it's something you signed up for and when you already know what it's going to look like.
Then I wondered why my attitdue was off….. I wasn't serving for God. I was serving for people. I was doing a job. I was looking at it as work and hey if I blessed a few people that would be awesome.
So, as I sat I asked God to teach me. To teach me to serve in a way where my attitude wont make those Im serving feel like they are a burden. Teach me to serve You Lord in the most glorifying way. The answer…..GLADLY.
It's ridiculous how much power our attitudes have.
I think back to a day at the salon in Tennessee. While I was washing a clients hair I saw an old man walk in the salon with his head down. Ok thats nice an old man with his head down but then he looks up and smiles with a smile that completely healed my heart from the worries of my day.
We have the power of Christ in a smile. We have the power of Christ in a laugh. We have the power of Christ in the way we serve. Here is a quote that I've found comfort in while being overseas.
"Preach the Gospel, if necessary, use words."
Sometimes we may even have the power of Christ in our words. Too often we think we have to say so much to share the love of Christ. Instead, we should be a people that focus more on being the love of Christ. I agree with what James said "…everyone should be slow to speak" James 1:19
With all that said, for those of you who have the desire to go on a mission trip I encourage you to serve in your church or in your community somewhere. It truly begins there. Moreover, instead of signing up for something you think you will like ask them where they need the most help.
