Lights, Camera, ACTION!

Over the past few days, I've been pondering the significance of the word "serve" in the life of a Christ follower. Scripture tells us that Jesus did not come to be served to but to serve. (Mark 10:45) If you do a word search in scripture for the word "serve", you'll come up with MANY verses that talk about the importance of serving the Lord, as well as each other. I love when the words of the Bible are simple and to the point, like this verse from Paul's pen in Romans 12:10-11, "Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." 

Those last three words are where my eyes landed when reading this passage this time around--"serving the Lord." That implies something that is ongoing, not once and done. There are myriad ways to serve the Lord...in our churches, in our homes, in the marketplace, in our neighborhoods, etc. etc. etc. My prayer is that families instill this virtue of service into their children from an early age. If you have children, you know that  they can easily default to the "it's all about me" mode of living. Getting them involved in serving others helps to battle the bent toward self-centeredness. The Christian life is about ACTION! And that action is generally aimed away from ourselves.

Our church is involved with a wonderful outreach called Adopt-A-Block of Aroostook, and this has proven to be a great way for families to minister together. Each time we gather, there are families with children who are participating...helping to pack food bags, helping to clean up, helping to load vehicles, helping to deliver items to people's homes...all the while keeping the focus on someone besides themselves.

How do you help your children love and serve others? How do you teach them that they are not the center of the universe? Leave a comment with your input...it's always great to hear how other families are navigating the waters of raising their children.