Serving Will Follow

Service vs. servant
Doing vs. being
Action vs. identity

For me, choosing to serve is a matter of pride. I feel that too often I choose to serve so others will notice, so that they will see what I'm doing. I choose to serve to I can live up to the expectations that others have on me (or the ones I think they have on me). I choose to serve so that I can say, "yeah, I serve three days a week" (or whatever it may be). When I choose to serve, I am only building my reputation. Galatians 1:10 asks a question that I have to remind myself of often, "Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings or of God?" When I choose to serve, I am definitely trying to win the approval of human beings.

Choosing to serve is trying to perform a function without knowing my identity. Doing follows being. I can serve all summer long and still not be a servant. But what good is that? I can pull ski runs, pull banana boats, talk with campers...but if I'm not a servant of Christ out on the water, then who am I? If I am not a slave to Christ, then what am I? ...just a 19 year old who spent her summer on a lake hanging out with high schoolers.

As much as I want to serve this summer, I want so much more to be a servant. I want my identity to be found in Christ. "...being Yahweh means being servant." If we want to become more and more like Christ, we need to become servants. As we learn how to BE servants, we will learn how to DO service.

This summer isn't about boats. It's not about wake boarding, swimming, banana boats, or bracelets. This summer is about being so in love with Jesus that we can't help but be servants. This summer is about modeling to campers, barneys, dock hands, grocery store staff, people around town, etc. what it looks like to be servants. And in that, challenging them to come alongside us and be servants as well.

When we choose to be a servant, we are choosing to let Jesus nail our hands to our own crosses, we are choosing death. It's going to hurt, we are going to wince, we are going to want to run from that cross, but we serve a living God and He will give us life!

I want to be a servant this summer. I don't want to serve myself, the admin team, my driver team, barneys, campers, dock hands...I don't want to serve anyone but Yahweh himself. I want to be His servant. I want my motivation to be Him. And I trust that from the overflow of being a servant of Jesus Christ...serving will follow.