Servant's Heart

 By: Grace Metzger 

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others,
as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.
 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God.
 If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides,
 so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ

1 Peter 4: 10-11 ESV

Recently my mother and I were discussing something, which in reality that means I was complaining very loudly and my very kind mother was allowing me to vent to her. But we were talking about how people serve nowadays. I am very passionate about serving in the Church, growing up as a pastor's kid this was just something you always did. I started serving as soon as I could; since I was 11 years old I've been teaching in the preschool class, running the coffee house and helping out in nursery. But as I was complaining I realized that I kept saying that serving is just what you're supposed to do, I wasn't talking about the actual reason why we should be serving. I started looking into why I actual serve in the church.

 In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak,

remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.

Acts 20:35 ESV

The first thing that comes to mind when I think about serving is Jesus washing the disciples' feet. Jesus Christ Himself knelt before the disciples and washed their dirty feet, not because He was asked to, not because no one else could, but He did it out of His love for others. It would have been easy for Him to tell one of the others to do it, it would have been easy for Him to refuse to do it. But instead, He humbled Himself to do it because of His great love for others. 

Cleaning their feet wasn't a pretty job, it wasn't like His other acts of service such teaching others or healing. But He still felt like it was important to do the not so pretty jobs -that He wasn't too good to do that kind of service. 

 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us.

If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith;

if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach

Roman's 12:6-7 ESV

Everyone has a different gift that we're called to use. Sometimes we don't get the "glamorous" gifts, not everyone is called to preaching and not everyone is called to be on the worship team. But Jesus Himself demonstrated the importance of each gift. He showed that helping others by cleaning the disciples' feet is important just like teaching. Maybe your gift is to clean the church, maybe your gift is to be in the nursery, or serve coffee in the coffee house. Those are all important gifts that God is calling us to use. 

Having a servant's heart is about accepting that God gave each of us a gift and we are called to use it to help others so that we may glorify Him. Whether that be singing on the worship team, teaching a Sunday school class, or cleaning the church building. Whatever our gifts are, God is wanting us to use these gifts and use them with a happy and grateful heart. God called me to work with the younger kids, that is why I serve in my church. What gift is God calling you to use?

Discussion Question: What do you believe a servant's heart means?