Day Three · Servant
Pause
For even the Son of Man came not to be served
but to serve…
Matthew 20:28
Breathe deeply as you take distracting thoughts
and file them away for another time.
See Jesus welcoming you here.
Hear Him saying:
I did not come to be served,
but to serve you…
What invitation do you hear in these words?
Sit quietly with this for a few moments.
Ponder
Prefer to listen? Take a quiet moment and press play below.
Letting someone else serve us can be hard.
Our dependency embarrasses us.
Our need makes us feel vulnerable…
We fear rejection or judgment.
Perhaps Peter felt these things that night
when Jesus knelt to wash his feet.
Jesus knew that the Father had given Him authority over everything,
and that He had come from God and would return to God.
So He got up from the table,
took off His robe,
wrapped a towel around His waist,
and poured water into a basin.
Then He began to wash the disciples’ feet,
drying them with the towel He had around Him.
When Jesus came to Simon Peter, Peter said to Him,
“Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus replied,
“You don’t understand now what I am doing,
but someday you will.”
“No,” Peter protested,
“you will never ever wash my feet!”
Jesus replied,
“Unless I wash you, you won’t belong to me.”
The One with all authority…
kneels.
In this final act of humility,
Jesus the Servant reveals a way His followers
have struggled to receive for over two thousand years.
The invitation to follow Jesus
is an invitation to let Him serve us.
Read this story again with fresh eyes,
waiting for
a word,
a phrase,
an image
to arrest your heart.
Unless the Servant comes--
a towel of grace wrapped around His waist…
kneeling before us with eyes of love…
His powerful hands washing us clean--
we will not experience the joy of being His…
the wonder of belonging.
Our need is Christ’s opportunity.
Our dependence, His open door.
In serving us,
His glory shines.
Pray
“I did not come to be served…
but to serve.”
Jesus,
You come to serve--
yet in my striving, I forget
that as You serve me--
empowering, strengthening, loving--
Your glory shines brighter
than all my accomplishments.
Show me how
to let You serve me today.
Turn my focus from giving my all
to You becoming my All in all.
Amen.
Practicing Worship
Sit in quiet wonder before the exalted Christ.
Picture Him coming to wash your feet.
Tell Him where you need His grace today.
Look into His eyes of love
and let Him serve you.
Worship the Servant King.
When you are ready,