Simply Being – Be Willing and Serve

How willing are you to serve others? 

If we are someone that thrives on words of affirmation, this ‘willing to serve’ thing can go pretty easy. Every time someone asks us to do something, we can eagerly say yes. Then bask in the many words of affirmation that naturally come. It can become a very negative thing if the only reason we are willing to serve is for the pat on the back.  We can work ourselves into a crazy frenzy going about serving everyone.   

But… is that what this theme is talking about?  Is that the kind of serving we need to be willing to do?

Look at our first verses this week. Esther. She was willing to serve (after a bit of convincing, of course).

• Who was she serving?
• WHY was she serving? 

She was serving her people; the Jews. Her family, her uncle that had adopted her. Why? Because she was the person in the right place at that exact moment. She was called to that servant job. Not for affirmation.  Not for a pat on the back. Rather, because she was compelled to do it, on behalf of her people. To save her people from death.

That is the KEY to serving.

It MUST begin at our own family.  It MUST begin at our own marriages. It must begin with our own people.

The other verses we are reading this week are verses about serving.  Stories we all know well.

• Jesus sending the disciples out to heal complete strangers, to speak the Truth to people that they had never met.
• The story of the master who gave his servants talents. 

This second story really speaks to me at this season of life. The master handed out talents. Two of the servants went and did something with their money. They put what they had been given to work. They didn’t go out searching for what they had not been given. They didn’t go out and compare with each other. They just headed out to put what they had right in front of them to work. And the Master rewarded them for doing that. He saw they were faithful in a little and thus he knew they could be faithful over more. So he gave them more.

I have been given four precious disciples.  What am I doing with those four disciples?  What am I doing with the four God has put right in front of me? Am I comparing with other people? Am I going out and searching for more? Or am I looking at them with the task in front of me? Am I faithfully trying to point them to the Bible, help mold them into the women they are called to be?  These are questions I ask myself sometimes. 

These are questions you can ask yourself:

• Who are the disciples God has put in your life? 
• Who are the people that God wants you to pour into right now?

Our husbands are always on that list. First thing. Our children are next. There is NO question on those two things.

Beyond that, my friend, we are each going to be different. Are you like the disciples Jesus called to go out and preach two by two? Are you like those servants who had be given talents to put to use close to home? Where does God want you to be serving right now?

Who are you called to serve?

What talents are you called to increase?

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I struggle with dreams God has placed on my heart. Dreams of doing things that are bigger for God.  Each time I wrestle with this desire, the Holy Spirit speaks to me to ‘Focus on what is right in front of you’ and ‘Don’t worry about the future, just be faithful with what you have been given RIGHT now.’

Friend, maybe your heart needs that message right now, too. Maybe you look ahead and wish to do great things for Jesus. Look around you, who has God placed in your path that needs ministered to right now? 

• Like Esther, you are in a certain place ‘for such a time as this’. You are in your family, specially placed, to serve them as Esther did. 
• Like the disciples two by two, you are walking beside someone that may need encouraged as you serve together. 
• Like the servants given talents, you have also been given talents.  Are you focused on learning how to increase them or are you hiding them?
• Like Jesus, are you looking to minster and give your life to others, or are you waiting around for people to minister to you?
• Like Jesus, are you ready to lose your reputation, empty yourself, and become a servant?  Even until you die?

There are seasons.

Sometimes the season that we are in is at home with our little disciples. There are seasons where our serving is overwhelmingly huge at our job. There are seasons where we may not be doing much more than sharpening our talents. 

 

We must not compare with each other.  We each are so different.

Our seasons of life within our OWN lives are each so different. We must not compare with our other seasons.  ‘Single season’ serving looks a lot different than ‘married no children season’ serving. ‘Married with no children season’ serving looks TONS different than ‘married with children season’ serving.

We can’t compare one of our seasons to another. Don’t do it, Friend, you will be disappointed.

Others may ask you to pick up a new serving job. Look around at what is in front of you right now.  You have places to serve. I’m sure of it. Be picky, my friend. Don’t just say yes to everything.  Don’t compromise your family for the sake of receiving affirmation, by being willing to do all, for everyone else!

Wherever we find ourselves, there are people around us that need us.  That need our talents. Let’s be willing and serve.

What about being willing and serving comes easy for you? What about it comes hard? I’d love to know – leave me a comment!

 

Have you missed the last articles in the Simply Being Series? Go read them here