There’s a beautiful hymn we sometimes sing; it has only a few words but contained within them is a simple message the defines Christianity…
Make me a servant, Lord make me like You,
For you were a servant, Lord make me one too.
Make me a servant, do what You must do,
To make me a servant, Lord make me like You.
I thought of that song a couple weeks ago as Ed Shaw stepped onto the stage to read a scripture before the sermon. I don’t mean to put an unwanted spotlight on our brother: I’m sure he wouldn’t want the attention, but as a preacher I sometimes have to praise people publicly (it’s all part of the job).
I couldn’t help but notice that Ed, on account of his eyesight, had to stoop down, almost to the point of having his nose touching his Bible, in order to read the Text. I can tell you, knowing myself, that I would have been embarrassed, and I thought about that fact as I watched him, stooping low and pulling the microphone down so the reading could be heard. Almost immediately upon thinking that I felt a bit of shame, because I realized had that been me and if I had difficulty reading in that way, I probably would have just declined the request to get up and read the scripture.
Ed Shaw’s a better servant than I am. He stood up and read aloud the Word of God so that those in the auditorium who did not have a Bible could hear the Inspired Text. Did it matter to him that he needed to put his eyeballs an inch from the page? I suppose he would have preferred to stand up straight and read it if he could, but did it stop him from getting up and serving? Not at all.
My Master was a servant. He came not to be served but to serve (Mark 10:45). He never declined the opportunity to put someone else above Himself, even to the point of His own discomfort. Our brother Shaw demonstrated the example of Christ a couple weeks back, and it’s a lesson I hope to apply to myself as I go through the coming year. I hope you will too.
~ Matthew