Service

Yesterday I read a devotion in my book of devotions for youth workers that was about helping others. The thing that stuck out to me was how I have such a hard time asking for help. We live in a culture that says "Stand on your own two feet," "Do it yourself," and other such messages. And I think there is value in that, but asking for help is not a sign of weakness.

The Bible calls us to service, but in order for that to work, people need to be able to accept help. It is an interdependent relationship. And part of the beauty is that sometimes we serve the other person best by allowing them to serve us.

Because when people serve each other, they also are served in the process. I have experienced this so many times in my life. From last night at the volunteer appreciation dinner to bigger things like work mission and the Honduras trip. People who do service often say they feel like they got more out of it then the people they were serving.

So sometimes we are called to serve. Sometimes others are called to serve us. It's a balance.

"It is one of the most beautiful compensations of this life that no person can sincerely try to help another without helping him or herself. Serve and you shall be served. If you love and serve people, you cannot, by any hiding or stratagem, escape the remuneration." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson