The Way of a Servant

Greetings in the Name of Jesus,

Happy Thanksgiving! 

I do find it ironic that we celebrate Thanksgiving by eating enough to bust the buttons on our clothes. Personally, I wear baggy clothes to make room. Then we follow the annual day of “thanks” by spending more money in one day than any other day of the year… Black Friday. By the way, I love a good Black Friday or Cyber-Monday deal. 

This Thanksgiving, let’s focus on the way of a servant. What if we began the holiday season by thinking about living for others as well as taking advantage of the Black Friday deals? Today as I studied online deals, I was drawn to something Nelson Rockefeller once said; that wealth is measured more by what you give away than what you buy. Ella Wheeler Wilcox said that greatness is measured by one’s capacity for kindness. 

I love what the genius Albert Einstein said about service. For most of his career, he kept the portraits of two scientists on the wall, Newton and Maxwell. Toward the end of his life, Einstein realized the value of service. One day he replaced the portraits of Newton and Maxwell with Mahatma Gandhi and Albert Schweitzer. He said, "It is time to replace the image of success with the image of service."  

Albert Schweitzer was a great theologian and musician. Yet he gave up the notoriety to spend most of his life as a doctor in the mission fields of Africa. Albert Einstein became an expert on the life and writings of Schweitzer. When Einstein put Schweitzer’s picture on the wall, he was probably thinking of this quote from Schweitzer, "I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know, the only ones among you who will be truly happy are those who have sought and found how to serve."

Jesus said, “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.” (Mark 10:43-44)

This Thanksgiving, as we share hopes and dreams for the future, let us remember… no matter where the journey of life takes us, may we find the path paved with service.

As you gather around the table this Thanksgiving, in joy and sadness, may God bless you in all things.

See you Sunday as we begin the most joyous time of year, the celebration of Jesus birth. 

Pastor John Allen