the means to transform my heart (pt. 4)- service

All Christians are called to service. We serve God by serving others. But this isn’t like volunteering for a local charity. Even though volunteering for a local charity can be part of a discipline of service. If this is confusing, well, welcome to my world.

When is service a discipline, when is it a Christian response, and when is it just doing good for the sake of another person, whether you are Christian or not? Let’s break these down.

Non-Christian service- God is the source of all good and so when non-Christians serve they do so within God’s realm. Human conscience alone will lift up many opportunities to serve.

Christian response- When we follow Jesus and learn from him we become the kind of people who serve others naturally as a response to the love we are given by him.

Service as a discipline- Intentional acts of service, focused areas of service, hidden acts of service, are all specific ways one can expand God’s influence on one’s own life.

When someone joins the armed forces, we say they are “in the service.” When they are discharged or retired, it is called, “getting out.” Well, when we join Jesus in the greatest mission of the galaxies, to do Kingdom work with him, we are “in the service” for eternity. We never “get out.”

suggestions

• volunteer to tutor at a local school
• “adopt” someone at a retirement home whom you visit once a week
• make yourself available for one whole day to do chores at home (ouch!)
• make yourself available for one whole day to work at a church (hurray!)