Humble Yourself in Order to Serve

For even the Son of man came not to have service rendered to Him, but to serve and to give His Life as ransom for (insted of) many... (Mark 10:45)

Several years ago, as a student in nursing 101, I was eager to start learning the tasks of a registered nurse. I had a strong to jump into all the teshnical skills a nurse needs to perform her daily duties.
I was caught by surprise ehrn my instructor informed the class that our first task wa to give a bed bath. I was anxious to push one of the medication carts down the hospital corridor like the seasoned nurses, or bandage a serious wound, or better yet, sit by my patient's bedside and hold their hand while I listened attentively to their concerns, like the nurses in the movies. Giving a bed bath was not on mu list of skills to perform.
Finally, the big day arrived. I met a team of student nurses at a local jospital for our first opportunity to care for a patient. I wore my crisp starched uniform with pride as I grasped the index card in my poket with my patient's name and rrom number written on it.
After introducing myself to my patient, I gathered the necessary equipment for a bed bath. As my hands trembled, I wrapped the washcloth around my palm and dipped it in the basin of warm water. Then I grabed the bar of soap and created rich lather to begin my task.
I engaged in conversation with my patient, as I bathed them from head to toe. I relized how helpness they must feel that tey were tto weak to bathe their own feet. Being puffed up with pride of prestige over my position, wasn't what mattered. It was a sevice for me to humble muself and wash a patient's dirty feet.
One of the most powerful demostrations of service Jesus used to teach the disciples was when He washed Peter's feet. At first, Peter refused the notion that Jesus should wash his feet. He felt Jesus was too important to perform a task such as that.
However, Jesus humble heart convinced Peter that feet washing was among the many tasks a servant of God would be willing to perform.
The characteristic of a servant's heart are to thoughtful, kind, and humble. Humbling ourselves to serve others overcomes selfishness and releases joy into our lives.

LIFE SPRUNG FORTH FROM THE SOIL

Life sprung forth from the soil,
With His own hand's He made us in toil.
Created equal, we were made to be,
Made in the likeness of His majesty
The grass of the fields, the foam of the sea,
A rumble of thunder, God's love rains on thee.
He made the fish of the ocean,
and put the waves into motion.
He gave the birds wings to fly,
over the earth they soar in the sky.
The hills stand firm in His hand
His grace rains down to water the land.
Water trickles and streams flow,
used by all things to live and to grow.
Humbly He came to earth as JESUS,
looking down now, His eyes do see us.
Jesus came to set us free,
to raign in us eternally.
The eyes of men are open to see,
the natural splendor of God's beauty.
Stewards of creation, God calls us to be.
It is our responsibility to not misuse His gift of the galaxy.
Forever grateful praises we sing
To worship our God, the Almighty King.

Hormatilah Kekudusan Tuhan

Selama ini kita hanya mengenal Musa sebagai orang yang paling lembut hatinya di bumi. Namun pernahkah Anda bertanya, mengapa Musa tidak masuk ke Tanah Perjanjian yang dijanjikan Tuhan kepada Musa dan segenap orang Israel. Jikalau kita membaca Bilangan 20:1-13, maka kita akan menemukan akar penyebabnya. Daud mengungkapkan akar penyebab dosa tersebut demikian, “Mereka menggusarkan Dia dekat air Meriba, sehingga Musa kena celaka karena mereka; sebab mereka memahitkan hatinya, sehingga ia teledor dengan kata-katanya,”(Mazmur 106:32-33). Jadi, dosa keteledoran Musa sebagai tidak memberi rasa hormat kepada Tuhan. Mengapa Musa teledor? Karena segenap umat Israel menggerutu, "Sekiranya kami mati binasa pada waktu saudara-saudara kami mati binasa di hadapan TUHAN! Mengapa kamu membawa jemaah TUHAN ke padang gurun ini, supaya kami dan ternak kami mati di situ? Mengapa kamu memimpin kami keluar dari Mesir, untuk membawa kami ke tempat celaka ini, yang bukan tempat menabur, tanpa pohon ara, anggur dan delima, bahkan air minum pun tidak ada?" (Bil 20:3-5). Apa yang dimaksudkan dengan teledor? Marah dan mengeluarkan kata-kata yang tidak pantas. Musa berkata dengan emosi, "Dengarlah kepadaku, hai orang-orang durhaka, apakah kami harus mengeluarkan air bagimu dari bukit batu ini?"(ayat 10). Kata-kata ketidakpercayaan Musa berbuntut dalam tindakan. Musa mengangkat tangan dan memukul bukit batu dengan tongkat dua kali, sampai keluarlah banyak air. Namun, mukjizat tidak menjadikan Musa seorang yang berkenan kepada Allah. Karena,”TUHAN berfirman kepada Musa dan Harun: Karena kamu tidak percaya kepada-Ku dan tidak menghormati kekudusan-Ku di depan mata orang Israel, maka kamu tidak akan masuk ke negeri yang akan Kuberikan kepada mereka." (ayat 12). Kita melihat bahwa betapa seriusnya Tuhan terhadap apa yang kita sebut sebagai sikap rasa hormat. Jangan pernah memiliki sikap yang tidak memberi rasa hormat kepada Tuhan atau kepada yang lain, karena akan berakibat fatal. Untuk itu, kita perlu mengembangkan sikap saling mendahului dalam memberi hormat kepada yang lain. Kita akan menuai kembali apa yang telah kita taburkan. (ayub).
Write comment