For or With ~ Motivation is Everything

Greetings Dear Reader, 

Many years ago, I regularly interacted with a family member who loved to cook for everyone.  She would make good meals and we would all gather anticipating the excellent food. She would also spend most of our dining time telling us the difficulties she faced in feeding us all.   The food she made was delicious but dining on her need to remind us of the sacrifice she made to prepare it was not. 

I think we do the same thing to the Father when we think our service to him is for him.  When I do something for someone it must come from my heart.  Like we said about giving, service must be done out of love for the Father.  We engage with him in serving others so we are serving with him, not for him. 

We all get this.  There are things we do for others with no thought for ourselves.  The joy we feel when we serve selflessly lasts.  It is not prideful or directed at our own positioning in life.  Rather, it seeks to show love to others.  We are supposed to esteem others better than ourselves. 

So much of what we see today tells us to care for ourselves first.  Jesus asks us to seek the Father, his Kingdom, and His righteousness.  The command is to love the Father with all we are.  When I engage in loving the Father through serving others, they too can see my love.  

Our brains gravitate to the question of our own needs.  Jesus assures us if we seek the Father first all we need will be there for us.  We are not supposed to give thought to ourselves.  We are required to think of and serve others.  In an episode of Star Trek, The Guardian of Forever, James Kirk says, “There is a phrase that eventually becomes more important than ‘I love you.’  It is ‘how can I help?’” 

We can choose to walk into an environment with a heart seeking the good of others.  When we do, it is much easier to find Christ in the moment.  It is then easier to follow him.  It all begins with my understanding of what serving others is, Dear Reader.  I cannot claim to be doing something “for Jesus” and consider I am good in my faith and following.  What I can do is be ready to serve by observing the needs of others and listening to the Spirit. 

When we serve others out of love, we are with the Father.  When we give even a cup of cold water in Christ’s name, we are following.  We find we do not need attention for it.  The journey is better when we serve each other.  Whether the way is easy or rough, it is love completing us and giving us joy. 

Wishing you joy in the journey, 

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a homeowner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”
(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) 

Every human story is part of the great story that leads to the Father getting everything back to Good. 

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Go ahead; tell them what I did for you…