Serving this Season...

Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people…Ephesians 6:7

Last Saturday, I met my daughter and her two oldest sons, Hudson and Beau, at First Christian Church to help fill gift bags for the students at Parson’s School.

Our church has been ministering and working with Parson’s School for several years!

There were a variety of jobs to choose from on Saturday morning…

You could fill gift bags…

Make Christmas cards…

Or help fill boxes with food.  I learned that many of these children depend on school lunches throughout the week, so our church wanted to make sure they were fed while they were on their holiday break.

We decided we would fill gift bags with t-shirts and a book!

The boys were adorable!

Hudson followed his mama to the T-shirt table and helped picked up one size of T-shirts for the children, while Beau and I headed to the table to pick up another size!

I put the books in order, while Bekah wrote the child’s name on a tag, which would be placed on each bag!

Beau’s job was to hand a bag to Hudson, and Hudson’s job was to place the name tag on each bag!

Hudson carefully and meticulously placed each tag on the bag!  He definitely is a first-born child!  The labels were placed perfectly on each bag!

Once that task was accomplished, the boys took turns placing a t-shirt and book in each bag!

They asked questions throughout the morning…

What are we going to do this morning, mama?

Who are we helping?

This isn’t regular church today, is it?

What is the title of this book, Gammy?

What do you think this story is about?

And though the boys had questions throughout the morning, their hearts were tender and willing to do whatever was asked of them!

I was blessed to see them using their little hands to help!

At the tender ages of 3 and almost 5 years old, these little boys were learning what it means to serve others.

Scripture reminds us…Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people…Ephesians 6:7.

I love that my children desire to teach their children at a young age to serve…to give…to be like Jesus!

Jesus, the King of Kings…Lord of Lords…provided a wonderful example of serving… displaying a true servant’s heart.

When Jesus and the disciples were enjoying the evening Passover meal, Jesus rose to serve.

God’s word tells us…so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.  After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him…John 13:4-5.

The disciples had just walking through dirt streets…in sandals…stepping through who knows what?

To be frank…their feet were probably caked with dirt and mud.  This wasn’t a simple rinsing…their dirty feet needed to be washed thoroughly!

And once they were clean, Jesus took the towel that was wrapped around him and dried their feet.

When Jesus had finished washing their feet, he returned to his seat and shared with the 

disciples…

“Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them.  “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am.  Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.  I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.  Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him...John 13:12-16.

Jesus illustrated a wonderful of example of humbling himself to serve the disciples. 

After washing their feet, Jesus told the disciples that they should do the same.

They should go into the world and serve others! 

There are so many opportunities for each of us to serve this season…and throughout the entire year!

You might think that you have no gifts or talents to offer!  Or you might wonder how God could use you to touch the lives of others!

Oh, Dear Ones…HE can definitely use you today!

My little grandsons may now quite understand the concept of serving…helping others…but God still used them this past weekend!

Their little hands carried t-shirts, passed bags, placed labels on those bags and then those little hands were used to fill the bags!

If God can use a 3-year old and almost 5-year old…HE can use you too!

Let’s ask God how HE can use each of this today!

Dear Heavenly Father…thank you for opportunities to serve and be used for your glory!  Thank you for the wonderful example that Jesus used over 2,000 years ago to illustrate what it means to have a servant’s heart!  And Lord…thank you for little hands that are so willing to help and serve!  I pray that each of us would have servant’s heart this year.