Serve One Another

Galatians 5:13-15

Verse 13  You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free.  But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.

    Yesterday we started the 5 One Anothers with Love One Another.  Today we move to Serve One Another.  Serve one another friends are the kind of friends who step in and step up when we are feeling overwhelmed and overtaken by life’s demands.

    As we began discussing yesterday, we show love to one another by serving one another.  The practical part of serving one another is easy to talk about.  There are plenty of ways to serve and I’m sure we could stand around all day coming up with ideas.  But what does it mean to actually do the serving?

    Serving is a selfless act that is bestowed on another without the idea that one will be repaid.  That is one of the key things we need to remember when setting out to serve others, it will likely be a sacrifice in some way.  Serving one another is a method of being a blessing to someone who is struggling through the battles of life or maybe a moment of overwhelming life.  One benefit is that we will likely end up feeling blessed as we serve.

    We all have times in life when we could have used someone coming alongside and helping us through, so it isn’t that we don’t know what these times look like.  So why do we sometimes find it hard to help others?  It could be that we aren’t looking at others.  We tend to be so self-focused that we miss what is going on in another’s life.  Another issue is that we don’t have the relationship with the other person that we should have to know how they are struggling.

    If we are to be serving each other, we need to make the choice to step up and step in to help those that need it.  We need to be intentional about keeping an eye out for where we can serve.  We should be on the lookout for ways to put others before ourselves.  We may want to think about what we are good at so that we know where best we should serve.  Maybe you aren’t handy in the kitchen, but can swing a hammer better than most.  Look for things that fit your likes and set about doing them.  Serve others as a way of showing the Father’s love.

Making It Personal

    Have you ever been served by someone in the Church?  What is a way that you can serve others?  How are you going to serve today?

Making It Personal Kids

    What does it mean to serve?  Has anyone ever served you?  How can you serve someone?

Closing Prayer

    Father, thank You for giving us many examples of serving through Your Son.  Give us eyes to see where and who You want us to serve.  In Jesus’ name, amen.