5 Reasons Serving Others is Worth the Time

Christian liberty changes everything. The freedom we have in Christ does not permit us to do whatever we want. We are not freed to engage in selfish sin. As the chains of bondage were broken when Christ took on the form of a servant (Philippians 2:7), we put on the garment of love and serve one another. In so serving others, we serve God.

Here are 5 reasons serving other is worth the time:

1.     Serving others takes the focus off you.

To be frank, life is not about you, anyone or me. Our purpose on Earth is to glorify God and let His Kingdom be made known. How do we show the overwhelming love of God? We don’t keep it to ourselves. We let God’s love overflow through our hands and feet. The transforming love of God leads us to think more highly of others than we think of ourselves, such as in 1 John 3:16-18:

By this we know love, that He laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in Him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

In serving others, we extend God’s love to others. The sacrificial love of God leads us to sacrifice ourselves in order that others might encounter what we have.

2.     Serving allows you to develop humility

When considering serving others, many of us start comparing ourselves to others and wondering what others will think of us. We deny our best service when caught in traps of comparison. We may feel our service is not the same caliber as someone else’s. There’s a great quote by Rifqa Bary that says, “Instead of comparison and self-pity, discontentment can be an invitation to serve others and open our eyes to the gifts God has given us.” If we look around to see how our level of service compares to others, we are serving out of the flesh. Galatians 5:13 says,

For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

      Service with a prideful attitude won’t be beneficial to the person being served, as it won’t look to see what they really need. To determine if we have a humble attitude in serving, we can ask:

·      Am I doing this to get recognition or applause?

·      Am I looking for the needs of others before the needs of myself?

·      Am I relying on God for the places I lack?

·      Am I comparing my best to others’ best?

      As we use the gifts God has given us without regard to what others think, God gets the glory. We develop humility as we lay down our best offering to God with an others-focused heart.

3.     Serving others if a form of worship

In all we do, we are to “do all to the glory of God.” In our workplaces, homes, and daily spaces, we can worship God. A church building is not necessary to worship God. Hebrews 12:1 says,

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

This means that everything we do can be a form of worship if we are doing it unto God. Our worship is most satisfying to God when we “serve with your [our] whole hearts, as if serving the Lord, not people” (Ephesians 6:7 ESV). Our love for God is the root of our lives of service. Even when no one else notices, God notices our service.

4.     Service is what we were made for

We were made in the image of God. As image bearers, we should immolate His image. In sending His Son, Jesus, we were given a model of a life of servitude. He didn’t consider it an inconvenience when He was called on. He considered it a chance to serve His Father. He gave of Himself sacrificially. Matthew 20:28 says, “even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” The Son of God could have come in pomp, demanding praise and honor; yet, He came in humility to serve humanity. He didn’t seek the limelight. Mark 9:35 says, “And He sat down and called the twelve. And He said to them, ‘If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” In serving, we get the opportunity to become more like our Creator. We become more like the Child of God we were born to be.

5.     Service is a space for God to work on you

Service is not easy. Serving people is messy. Many times in serving others, we have to go beyond our own abilities. Serving others will often expose areas of weakness in our hearts.  1 Peter 4:11 then says,

whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies-in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.

To serve others fully, we must be fully submitted to God. Service is the place to develop our gifts. 1 Peter 4:10 says, “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.” We best use our gifts when in the context of serving others.

As we remember the great act of love Christ showed, our hearts develop a love for serving others. The response to freedom in Christ shows itself in service. This quote by Dieter F. Uchtdorf sums up the transforming ability of serving others: “As we extend our hands and hearts toward others in Christlike love, something wonderful happens to us. Our own spirits become healed, more refined, and stronger. We become happier, more peaceful, and more receptive to the whisperings of the Holy Spirit.” May the love Jesus Christ displayed in taking the form of a servant transform our attitude about service.

Daily Ways to Invite God In

I know I am supposed to invite God into my daily life. I even recognize that He deserves the spot of praise and adoration in my life. If you are like me, you know this on paper. You may have even tried to put this to practice in your life. However, also like me, you may have realized that something keeps getting in the way. What gets in the way? Me. Two letters, but a lot of pride encompasses those two letters. I’ve wondered why God wants so much from me. I’ve asked Him why He needs extra time in my day? He gently reminds me that I would have no hope without Him. He shows me how much He longs to bless me in my daily walk with Him. I’m learning that He longs so much more for me than from me. The more I give to Him, the more I am open to receive from Him.

Here are some practical, intentional ways I’ve learned I can invite God into my daily life:

-Notice God in nature.

God created the universe and everything in it. When I go outside on a beautiful day, I love to thank God for the beauty in the things I see. It’s a good way to slow down and acknowledge the splendor of what God has made. Job declares the work of God when he says,

But ask the beasts, and they will teach you;

The birds of the heavens, and they will tell you;

Or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you;

And the fish of the sea will declare to you.

Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?

In His hand is the life of everything and the breath of all mankind.

(Job 12:7-10 ESV)

This action of thanking God for the things I see reminds me of how small I am and how great and mighty God is. When I see the way God provides life to the plants and waters, I can acknowledge that He can breath life into my hurting situation.

-Pray before meals.

I grew up praying before meals. I am learning that praying before meals gets you into the habit of expressing gratitude for all God has provided. It is an outward declaration that God has provided for your needs. In the Bible, there are multiple examples when the disciples thanked God before they ate. There is a powerful example for giving thanks for everything in Acts 27. The context of the verse is Paul and 276 men have been on a ship for fourteen days, without food. After this many days, Paul tells the men to eat some food so they can survive. It says,

As day was about to dawn, Paul urged them all to take some food, saying, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have continued in suspense and without food, having taken nothing. Therefore I urge you to take some food. For it will give you strength, for not a hair is to perish from the head of any of you.” And when he said these things, he took bread, and giving thanks to God in the presence of all he broke it and began to eat.

(Acts 27: 33-35 ESV-my emphasis added)

As Paul did this act of thanksgiving, he not only expressed his own gratitude to God, but also reminded the others. The action of praying before meals, privately or publically, aligns our hearts to see that all good things come from God. 

-Post scriptures around your home.

When I get in the swing of my day, I can get so distracted by all my duties that I forget to reflect on God’s Word. Something that helps me with this is to post scriptures in places that I regularly come in contact with: bathroom mirror, refrigerator door, walls of home, etc. In order to continually reflect on God’s Word, we are instructed to “write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates” (Deuteronomy 6:9 ESV). I see these visual reminders and am reminded to align my attitude and mind with God.

-Have daily quiet time with God in the morning.

It is so critical to my daily focus on the Lord that I have a regular quiet time. Time of day is not so important. I think it’s more important that quiet time is made to be a priority, from a desire to spend time with Him.  I’ve found that if I begin my day in the Word and in communion with God, I feel better equipped to take on the challenges of the day. I feel like I am putting on the “armor of God” before going to fight the battle that the day may bring. I love the expectancy David has in his Psalm:

O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;

 in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch

(Psalm 5:3 ESV-my emphasis added)

By starting out my day in prayer and devotion, I am training my mind to consider God before making decisions. By ordering my day with Him first, I am making a declaration that He is the one who can bring order to my day.

-Talk to God during the day.

The idea of talking to God during my day used to feel so forced. I didn’t know how to naturally fit it into my day. I found a way to make this work is to turn off my music on the way to work and just pray. I love that quiet time I spend, just God and I, having a conversation.  When a struggle comes up in the day, I’m getting in the habit of going to God first before talking with a friend. This is still a work-in-progress, but it helps me acknowledge who can do something about my situation. One final way I talk to God during my day is to speak scriptures over myself during exercise. A few favorites I typically use are: Isaiah 40:31, Psalm 46:1, Psalm 18:1-2, and 2 Timothy 1:7. The more you make talking to the Lord a habit, the less foreign and forced it will feel. While God knows everything, He longs to hear us come to Him.

-Reflect on your day.

I am naturally a reflective person, but reflection used to happen only when I thought of it. As I already started my day in communion with God, I decided to end it that way, also. The idea in my head was that God had supplied that day to me, so I should thank Him for it. I also think about what my sin struggles were during the day. I don’t do that so I can beat myself up. I consider my sin struggles so I can try to determine what part of my heart needs to be dealt with. Another thing that helps me is to think about what I’ve been learning about God. Sometimes, I will record it in a journal I have on my nightstand. Whatever reflection I do helps me end my day giving God the right place in my life.

When I get me out of the picture and give God the daily reverence that He deserves, my heart becomes more full. There is less room in my heart for me to fill with empty actions when I choose to fill my life with expressions of devotion. If you are like me, there are always areas of improvement in daily devotion to God. God can always be made more of a priority in our lives. I hope these ideas of ways to invite God into your life are helpful to you. The more we seek Him and devote time and space to him, the more we will find Him.