Happy Friday, Friends!
I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day begins to dawn in my Sweet Home Alabama! Let’s intentionally choose to make this one a masterpiece! 😊
Earlier this week I was listening to a Life.Church with Craig Groeschel sermon titled Selfless, Part 2: Faithful in Service. Pastor Groeschel preached the message on January 14, 2018, and you can watch it on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gIKGsreQck
What he starts off the sermon with, and the challenge of this Happy Friday, is this; “If somebody were to describe you with the word ‘always,’ what would they say? What would they say you are always doing?”
Please Friends, stop and think about it for a
moment…the options are limitless.
Is it, “He is always out for himself” or is it, “He
is always serving others”?
Is it, “She is always worried and stressed” or is
it, “She is always walking out her faith”?
Is it, “He is only nice to those he thinks are important or can do something for him” or is it, “He is always nice to everyone”? (I bolded, italicized, and underlined “everyone” to emphasize that I literally mean everyone – including those who don’t believe what we believe, act like we act, think like we think, look like we look, etc.)
You get the point! And I am sure if you are like most of us, you are shifting in your seat a little bit right now! Let’s unpack this…
First, something that should scare the heck out of all of us is “always” is measurable. When the word “always” is used, it literally means “at all times; on all occasions.” It doesn’t mean when we feel like it, we are having a good day, things are going our way, etc. Always literally means always and that is a very high bar! 😊
Now, the honest answer is none of us are always able to do, act, and be all that we want or what we were created to do, act, and be. Unfortunately, we are flawed and broken and thus, we will not be able to always achieve always – yes, I meant to say it that way! 😊 Please don’t be discouraged, Friends, there is Good News! Jesus Christ died for our sins and, if we accept him as our Lord and personal Savior, not only are we assured eternity in Heaven, but we are also promised that the Holy Spirit – who is described as comforter, counselor, advocate, among other adjectives – will dwell within us. If we choose to allow Him to lead our lives, He will transform us into all that we were created and called to become. So, the next time you stumble, when you miss the mark of “always,” please simply take it as a friendly reminder that we need to rely on God.
A couple of points that Pastor Groeschel brought up that I thought were excellent…
He said, “Serving is not just what we do, at its core, it is who we are!” It reminds me of something I read several years ago when I was asked to develop a customer service program. I was reading a book on customer service, and it said something like, everyone is worried about what they are going to do, however what we really need to focus on is who we are going to be. You see, Friends, who we believe we are, what we say about ourselves, will determine how we act. So instead of saying, “I am always going to serve,” perhaps the message to ourselves is, “Serving is not what I do, it is who I am.” What we believe, think, and say about ourselves determines how we act…What would they say you are always doing?
Pastor Groeschel then pointed to a beautiful
testimony in the Bible. Acts 9:36 says:
36 In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in
Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor.
You see it? “She was always doing good…” What a beautiful legacy! What would they say you are always doing?
Ultimately, it is up to each one of us, individually, as to how people will answer that question. Please remember, it is not our hopes or our intentions that will determine how they answer that question, it will be our consistent actions that answer it. If we do an honest assessment and don’t like the answer, today would be a great day to begin changing the narrative!
While I respect you will choose whatever you want for your “always,” I am going to strive to become selfless – always! – as I believe I have been called to be. With this, I am going to close this Happy Friday with a few quotes about being selfless:
Mark 10:45
45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
“Learn to love without condition. Talk without bad intention. Give without any reason. And most of all, care for people without any exception.” – Anonymous
“Day after day, ordinary people become heroes through extraordinary and selfless actions.” - Sylvia Mathews Burwell
“True leaders are selfless. They have always been servants of the people first.” – Anonymous
Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.
Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious families, and please stay well! 😊
Kev
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