Get the appBelmont University - Freshmen First Forty DaysSample
Day 23 – Service
There’s a tendency in our modern culture to make things seem more glamorous than they are. Do you remember the day food trucks, vintage bicycles, wooden shipping pallets and buying real food from farmers became glamorous? Me neither, but here we are. The average, the old, the time-tested has all become trendy.
And when I think about service, the act of serving another person without expectation of repayment, I think of two separate images at the same time. One is glamorous. You know, the Peace Corps, or the idea of quitting college and moving to Africa, or reading books to perfectly well-behaved children in underprivileged inner-city classrooms. And then there’s the image of Jesus, bent low to the ground with a towel around his waist, a King washing the dusty feet of his twelve best friends.
Which one is real service? What does it look like when we selflessly and truly give of ourselves to benefit another? Paul commands the believers in Rome to, “Let love be genuine," (12:9) but is genuine love glamorous, or is it dropping to the dirt floor to wash dirty feet?
When I think back to the times when I have experienced the genuine, quiet joy of service, they have been the dirt floor times. They have been the times I’ve been in the despair places, the ugly places, with my brothers and sisters who are fighting to hold onto the truth. And when I have been there, by God’s grace I have sometimes been able to meet needs that are tangible and real, usually through small acts of obedience when I don’t feel like it.
I think the reason this is true is because when Jesus showed us how to serve, he gave us the image of washing dirty feet and said, “This is the way of the Kingdom.” To take part in the Kingdom we must emulate its King in His shocking act of reversal as He bends low. We watch Him serve us, and we do the same to others, not because it looks good, but because we are part of the story of Kingdom reversal.
Jordan Yeager | 2013 Graduate | Christian Ethics
There’s a tendency in our modern culture to make things seem more glamorous than they are. Do you remember the day food trucks, vintage bicycles, wooden shipping pallets and buying real food from farmers became glamorous? Me neither, but here we are. The average, the old, the time-tested has all become trendy.
And when I think about service, the act of serving another person without expectation of repayment, I think of two separate images at the same time. One is glamorous. You know, the Peace Corps, or the idea of quitting college and moving to Africa, or reading books to perfectly well-behaved children in underprivileged inner-city classrooms. And then there’s the image of Jesus, bent low to the ground with a towel around his waist, a King washing the dusty feet of his twelve best friends.
Which one is real service? What does it look like when we selflessly and truly give of ourselves to benefit another? Paul commands the believers in Rome to, “Let love be genuine," (12:9) but is genuine love glamorous, or is it dropping to the dirt floor to wash dirty feet?
When I think back to the times when I have experienced the genuine, quiet joy of service, they have been the dirt floor times. They have been the times I’ve been in the despair places, the ugly places, with my brothers and sisters who are fighting to hold onto the truth. And when I have been there, by God’s grace I have sometimes been able to meet needs that are tangible and real, usually through small acts of obedience when I don’t feel like it.
I think the reason this is true is because when Jesus showed us how to serve, he gave us the image of washing dirty feet and said, “This is the way of the Kingdom.” To take part in the Kingdom we must emulate its King in His shocking act of reversal as He bends low. We watch Him serve us, and we do the same to others, not because it looks good, but because we are part of the story of Kingdom reversal.
Jordan Yeager | 2013 Graduate | Christian Ethics
About this Plan
This 40 day prayer plan was written by students, faculty and staff at Belmont University as a daily devotional for incoming freshmen. Each day guides and encourages new college students in their faith in Jesus Christ through the word of God and the sincere thoughts, seasoned advice and honest prayers of the contributing authors. May these words help you grow in your love for God and your love for others!
More
We would like to thank Belmont University for providing this plan. For more information, please visit: www.belmont.edu
