With a couple of rare exceptions while in high school, the only jobs I have had were in the church: church pianist, minister of music, senior pastor. I have had a number of friends who worked in the restaurant industry, however, and I am really glad that I never had to go through that! I have heard from waiters and waitresses (and have seen many times myself) how badly they can be treated by those they are serving. They do the best they can to provide good service to the people to whom they are bringing food, and yet they are many times treated with disrespect, outright hostility, or perhaps worst of all considered beneath notice. (I know some pastors may feel the same way!)

What keeps a person in such a job? That question could be applied to any service job. Why do people in law enforcement go out daily and risk their lives for people who hate them simply because of the badge they wear? Why do bank tellers making minimum wage keep going back when they know someone is likely going to come in and yell at them about an account balance for which they are not responsible? The answer is the same for those who stick it out in their respective fields: they feel they can make a difference. That's what service is all about, isn't it? Making a difference in the lives of those around the one doing the serving.

The Christian life is not a life of being served; it is a life of service. Jesus Himself gave a powerful example for us to follow. During the Last Supper with His disciples, He washed their feet, an act of incredible humility and service. Let's face it: many things have changed since biblical times, but the smell of feet has not! Think of the humility demonstrated when the Son of God washed the sweaty, smelly feet of his disciples! This is why He said: "I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them" (John 13:15-17). This does not refer exclusively to the practice of washing feet, but to the act of humble service to others. If we truly know and understand the teachings of Christ, then we are blessed in the doing of them.

What gets us into trouble is when we worry too much about our own needs being met instead of the needs of others. To borrow a phrase from John F. Kennedy: "Ask not what (the Kingdom of God) can do for you; ask what you can do for (the Kingdom of God)." We so often find ourselves walking around with our hands open, always asking and never seeking to give. Our churches are filled with people who seek their own desires and discard the needs of others.

I heard a story of a pastor preaching a revival in a church. The church's pastor was showing him around before Sunday School began, and the pastor pointed to one classroom in particular. "This is our Senior Adult Men's Class," the pastor said, and opened a door into a small room that contained five cushy recliners and a chalkboard. The pastor told the visiting preacher that the men in the class brought those chairs in so they would be comfortable during Sunday School. About this time the class teacher walked up, and the visiting preacher asked where any visitor to the class might sit. The teacher replied, "Oh, we don't have visitors in our class. But if we did, they could round up a chair from somewhere." The visiting pastor realized that he had his work cut out for him.

A serving life is not a life of comfort or leisure, but one of work. More often than not, the work often goes unheralded and unrewarded by man. But we must never forget the example that was set by our Master and all that He endured for us. Just as He said, "A slave is not greater than his master".