Service

 

Kevin Thomas

 

Thursday, June 3, 2010

 

Everyone wants their children to become great. We also want them to do great in life, able to make a living, able to do well enough to help others. But we face new challenges in today’s economic and social environment. Our new, service economy is not the same as the economy the United States had 15 to 20 years ago. America has come through the industrial age and the space age. Now we are in the information age.  The jobs in this era revolve around serving others. In America if you do not know how to serve, you will starve in the future. A high school diploma used to get most everyone a decent job – not any more. You need more than that to become great and live great. 

 

The Bible teaches us that the greatest in God’s Kingdom is the one who serves. 

 

³⁵James and John, the two sons of Zebedee, came up to Jesus, saying, “Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask of You.” ³⁶ And He said to them, “What do you want Me to do for you?” ³⁷ They said to Him, “Grant that we may sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your glory.” ³⁸ But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” ³⁹ They said to Him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you shall drink; and you shall be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized. ⁴⁰ “But to sit on My right or on My left, this is not Mine to give; but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.”

 

⁴¹Hearing this, the ten began to feel indignant with James and John. ⁴² Calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, “You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them; and their great men exercise authority over them. ⁴³ “But it is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant; ⁴⁴ and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. ⁴⁵ “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:35-45, NASB)

 

Are you preparing your child to be great? You are if you are teaching your child to serve others wisely and unselfishly. We still need our entertainers (athletes, singers, and actors), but we need more than that. We need people who serve, especially those who serve from a servant’s heart.  Those positions will always be much more abundant in supply. Have you talked to your child about any of the following? 

 

Missionaries – go to other countries to serve.

 

Firefighters – are always on call to rescue someone from fire and smoke. 

 

Doctors – work to preserve our physical help in spite of most peoples’ poor physical fitness and nutrition habits. 

 

Preachers – serve the soul of the community, working toward eternal benefits in the lives of those they lead, helping people find the things of God which are the things that last. 

 

Teachers – educate the mind, preparing young people for a life time in the marketplace. 

 

Social Workers – endeavor to undo some of the sociological issues of fallen world. 

 

Some complain about the recession. But for some of us, we have always been in a recession. 

We know how to survive in lean years, because all our years have been lean. We were born in lean years, grew up in them, went to school, got married, had our children, sent them on their way, and retired in lean years. We are survivors. We must now, however, learn to move from surviving to succeeding. Looking at the future of our economy the only way to make this shift is to learn to serve. 

 

 

Here are some ways you can work with your child to help develop a servant’s heart in them. 

 

·       Read books together about great servants in history. Go to your local library where all books are free. Ask if they have a reading program your child can join. 

 

·       Model service before your children. Don’t just tell them. Show them!

 

·       Teach them how to serve at home. Who needs a cup of cold water in Jesus’ name?

 

·       Raise money for Haiti relief efforts. Let them set up their Kool-Aid stand for a cause worthier than going to the toy store. 

 

·       Volunteer at a local homeless shelter. Call and ask them how you and your child can donate an hour or two or a day.

 

·       Sign your child up to serve the needy at your church.

 

·       Go on a missions trip. Poor nations and cultures stand in need of much Christian service. 

 

·       Visit a local nursing home and ask the social worker who needs a friend on birthdays and holidays. Visit them at least once a month and no less than every six weeks. 

 

Some colleges, universities and other organizations give scholarship money based on the service a student has rendered during middle school, junior high and high school. Do not wait until your child is in a junior and senior in high school. It’s easier to shape a sapling than an oak tree. Start serving now. 

 

Everyone wants their children to become great people. Jesus said the greatest are the ones who serve others. Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. taught us that “Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve.”  Your assignment is to teach your child to grow up saying, believing and living out this statement: “I can be great, because I can serve.”

 

To download this article in MS Word click here.