Just One Pebble Can Make a Ripple

Tim Tebow said, "We have to humble ourselves and the way you do that is by serving other people."

David Brainerd said, "We should always look upon ourselves as God's servants, placed in God's world, to do his work; and accordingly labour faithfully for him; not with a design to grow rich and great, but to glorify God, and do all the good we possibly can."

And Jesus Christ said of Himself in Matthew 20:28, "just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

When Jesus speaks about serving, we really should listen to Him and what He has to say about it. It was important enough for Him to tell us that even He has come to SERVE and not to BE served. Our Lord and Savior is a Holy Servant! Just as His examples all throughout the Scriptures are given to us for us to mirror, so too, is this. We are to be servants. Not only to Him but to others. The word Jesus uses for servant is the Greek word “diakoneō” which is where we get the name “deacon.” Diakoneō means “to be a servant of, to serve, wait upon, or minister to.”  That's exactly what every single believer is called to do. Serve, minister to and wait upon others. To be a willing, obedient servant of the members of Christ’s Body, the church. There are people who have the spiritual gift of serving but that's totally different than what I'll be speaking of here.

In the Book of John beginning at Chapter 13:1-17, we are shown the servitude of Jesus in washing the feet of His disciples. Even though He knew it was the night of His betrayal and the next morning would be His suffering on the Cross, Jesus took the time to tend to a duty, which was that of washing the feet of guests, which was usually left to the lowest servant in a man’s household. However, He did this under full awareness of His own Divine dignity. John says of Him in John 13:3-5, "Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, v4) rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. v5) After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded." It wasn't in spite of His greatness but, rather, it was BECAUSE of His greatness that Jesus served His disciples on that evening. Through His own attitude toward servanthood, He taught us that true greatness in the Kingdom of God consists not in our position, our authority or our personal "greatness" of skills and talents, but in serving one another.

Jesus' concept of greatness, and His is obviously the correct one, is so contrary to the world’s sense of values that even we Christians have difficulty grasping it. Even the disciples vied among themselves for position rather than for the privilege of serving one another. This is the nature of man. Competitive. James and John mother asked Jesus to allow her two sons to sit, one at His right hand and one at His left, in His Kingdom. So, on that memorable evening of the Last Supper, the disciples were disputing among themselves who was greatest. There's that competitive, comparing nature of man again! Their actions may appear crass to us today, but essentially we aren't any different than they. Our actions today just may be more subtle and/or refined, but our attitudes are all too often striving for position rather than the privilege of serving one another. The "self" is what it boils down to.....as usual.

The Bible is filled with stories about people who served God and others. Noah spent years building an Ark that saved the entire animal kingdom and all of humanity from extinction. He did it for others at the command of God, not just for him and his family. Moses led his people out of Egyptian captivity and spent 40 years serving them in the wilderness. Moses did this for his people, not himself as evidenced in his serving with them in the wilderness. The Apostle Paul completed three missionary journeys in his 30-plus years of ministry and although he suffered from beatings, imprisonment and ultimately, death, Paul was compelled to spread the good news of the Gospel. Even though these men are beautiful examples of the heart of serving their Master, Jesus was obviously the GREATEST example we have! None can compare to His servitude! As God's son, Jesus had the perfect opportunity to languish in His title, without activity, to send His disciples where He personally didn't want to go, or to build the world's largest congregation in one of His favorite cities. But instead, Jesus served His father humbly in Heaven, exhibiting transforming love through transforming acts of service.

Jesus advocated, and practiced, self denial, which is by far the true essence of love. Denying self. We deny self to take up our cross to follow Jesus because we love Him. In the midst of all of His rejection and persecution, Jesus continued to serve diligently and willingly. He didn't use His circumstances as an excuse to take a break. He rested, sure, and He spent time alone. But, you see, the purpose in His separation was to pray in order to gather wisdom, strength and direction from Father God. And while each of us go through life serving our King of Kings and serving others, we need to gather wisdom, strength and direction just like Jesus did, and probably more since He was Perfect and we are not.

We are called to serve. Called to serve Jesus and others. How can each of us be used daily in His purpose? What does it actually mean to serve? Well, let's take a few minutes to discover some of those answers. First of all, wherever we are at, right here and now, in our walk with the Lord is exactly where He is either putting us or allowing us to be based on His perfect Will for our lives as believers. He has a specific purpose and plan for each of us and in order to fulfill that purpose and plan, we are sent through trials and tests. So just because you may not have the ideal job, or the ideal pay, or the ideal mission, remember that it's God who gives you those things that you need! Some of the best blessings in my own life came from places that I wasn't happy being in at the time! But God knew better than I did and showed me the "whys" of those times! The nature of man is to compare ourselves with others and in our Christian walk, well, that isn't any different. Sometimes we tend to look at others and compare our life situations to someone else's.

We compare our "worth" by what we see God doing in THEIR lives instead of looking at what God is doing in OURS! Serving definitely does wonders in other's lives but it also does wonderful things in ours as well. But it has nothing to do with our worth and the "size" of the serving is not important either. It's all the same as long as we obey! Each of our missions here on this fallen earth is different and unique. While one person may be called to missionary work in a third world country, someone else may be called to a job that pays lower wages than they would like because there is a humbling affect and because God wants to use you to show someone something, or placed you there for someone to show YOU something. In either case, each "mission" calling is just as GREAT to God as the other. In our minds, the person who was called to a third world country to do missionary work seems like the greater of the two because it appears to have more "meaning." Well, my brothers and sisters, it's time we stop comparing ourselves and accept each challenge He gives to us because He is selecting them specifically for US individually! Competition has no place in the fellowship of believers.

God takes us down paths we never want to travel and roads we never want to see, just to get us to a place we never want to leave. Step back and take some time to observe the mannerisms, actions, words and life of a Christian who serves God and others. There is usually a smile on their face and contentment in their speech. There is usually laughter and joy in their spirits. These servants don't complain when they go through hard times because they know what blessings will come from those trials. In fact, when tests and trials come knocking on their doors, a servant of God looks forward to understanding those lessons that will be taught through those experiences. And, they fully expect that God will be glorified through it. Now this isn't to say that a servant of God doesn't get disappointed or even sometimes discouraged by all the trials and testing that comes their way because they're human, after all. It's just an attitude that they project from deep within themselves that is hard to miss. It shines of the love of Christ and they willingly serve others in the capacity that they've been given with a joyful heart!

Let's now take a look at the characteristics of a servant! I think it's fitting at this point in the post because serving in any capacity should be a glorified, joyful occurrence. One of the beauties of servanthood is that it doesn't require any special talent, skills or special gifts. Certainly though, we're to use our spiritual gifts to serve one another and also if God has given us certain natural abilities, then we definitely want to be good stewards of those abilities and use those in serving others in the Body as well. But it doesn't require any spiritual gift, natural skills or talent to wash feet, clean shoes, give a hug, smile at the heartbroken, assist the disabled or gather firewood. I can name several things to add to that list but the point is, that all that it takes and all that is required is a servant's attitude. Servants of God never stop serving because of their circumstances or the situation. They keep on doing the will of God no matter what, no matter how long and no matter what is asked. If they are serving where they are called to serve for that day, for that month, for that year, then they will continue to serve, Some people with a servant's heart make it look easy. That's because they know that the end is always better than the beginning, and that God always shows up and turns problems into testimonies.

I'll give you an example of my own difficult situation that I had been in, that the Lord called me to do. I was offered a job in an environment that I had never been in before. In fact, the facility hadn't even been built but I was hired three months prior. I KNEW this was a job from the Lord, and I also knew it wasn't going to be where I stayed. However, I didn't know what I was about to go through for the length of my position and I called upon the Lord daily sometimes, every other minute! But, I knew I had been sent there for something, for some reason. So I shined His light. I spoke the word. I set an example. I touched a heart. I took out the trash. I swept the floors. I LED BY EXAMPLE. Some things others in a higher position wasn't going to do on their own because they felt it was beneath them. Well, God gave me that job and I was going to glorify Him even through all the darkness that I had to fight on a daily basis! It soon became evident that the entire facility knew my Christian affiliation, as they liked to put it, because first of all I never denied who I belonged to and second of all, when you are the only outward Christian in a place of non-believers well, you become the "laughing" stock. Oh I was also OK with that as well because they would eventually see how the Lord cared for me there, how He surrounded me with a protection that they weren't even receiving and they would soon see how my actions matched my proclamations, faith and words. But that's also when the hard times began to get more intense. That was OK though. It wasn't about ME. It was about what the Lord would have me do each day I was there. The darkness seemed to surround that place like nothing I've ever witnessed before in ONE place.

I stepped back from the whole situation one evening and realized that God had a purpose for me there. Not just for me but for someone, or maybe even a few people. I cried many nights because it was extremely difficult to deal with some of the things I had to deal with, to keep a smile on my face, to uphold the truth, to be an honest and ethical worker in the midst of lies and darkness, to remain consistent in the walk that I was showing to those eyes who were watching me secretly, and to endure some of the battles that had been set as bait for me to fight. This was NOT an easy assignment by no means. But, I was soon beginning to get many "secret" compliments on my "disposition" and my "awesome" attitude. I was reminded by the Lord that He is in control. Those compliments then came out in the open. I began to have some people ask me questions about my "faith" and God. Then one day, someone asked if they could call me on my cell phone after work so they wouldn't get "caught" talking to me. I laughed at this but I gave this person my number. What I heard from them was an amazing account of how what little I thought I mattered there, was more than enough to make me cry. They spoke of their respect for me and for standing up for the "rightness of things" even for those who stood against me. They told me of the things specific people in authority were saying or plotting. I remember telling this person that they were one of God's angels, one of God's soldiers, sent to help me. That one conversation turned so many things around for that person! And for myself in ways I would uncover later.

Soon, there were more "soldiers" and "angels" secretly coming to my aid and being my eyes and ears. NOT because I asked them to be since I would NEVER ask that of anyone, but rather because something IN me shined enough for them to be drawn to and they saw that I was REAL. That I cared for all of them even though most were so against me. Even though things got much worse there, many of these "soldiers" and "angels" left that horrible place and some with a renewed spirit. There is one particular person, one that I knew God set before me for myself but also for something this person needed to witness and it was witnessed through me. That person also pulled me aside and told me just how much I was respected and they wished they could be like me. It was in reference to my standing up in front a boardroom of people, after being made fun of for my Faith, and stating that "I Am a Christian by FAITH and a Baptist by CHOICE. We are all sinners and the only difference between being a Christian and a non-Christian is that my sins have all been forgiven and is under the blood of my Savior. Yours can be too." I stood my ground then excused myself. I left the room speechless and in silence, but what I didn't know at that time, was the two people who would eventually become the two wolves rebelling against the Lord's placement of me there, was also in attendance. They weren't pleased hearing my defense of my faith. And they let it be known! Loud and clear! But the person who was holding me in high respect for speaking the truth in front of everyone was in attendance of this meeting and it took all of their courage to tell me they are a Christian too but hides it. It didn't take long before they became my "buddy", and began to take my side, standing up for me and eventually revealing their beliefs a little at a time too! I am obviously no longer there but I was the ONE pebble that made a big ripple in the ocean of His kingdom!

Be the Pebble and God Will Churn the Depths!

One pebble can make a ripple. It doesn't have to be a boulder, a brick or a rock even. It can be just a little, small SEEMINGLY insignificant pebble. So, you see, it doesn't have to be a big missionary trip to be a servant of God. Those are wonderful! I've always looked at missionaries as GREAT servants of God because what a calling! But, that's just it! We are all called to different missions, for different purposes and plans. The people that I'm supposed to cross paths with and serve wouldn't be the same as you or the next one. God takes all of our willingness, our gifts, talents and skills and puts us to use! It can be just one sentence said in front of a bunch of board members. I was used in that specific setting because God knew I wouldn't back down. He knew I was going to gain strength and understanding that I never knew existed inside of me. He knew I wouldn't sit quietly and would do the right thing, the godly thing. And He knew I would treat the whole place with love and fairly. Even knowing they had an agenda. I KNEW God's agenda was much greater! There are so many things we can do each day, no matter where we are, or what we're doing, to serve God. They ALL matter, my dear brothers and sisters! Every single one of them! All is for such a time as this! You could be shopping, and strike up a conversation with a stranger and that one act of kindness, that one act of serving God because you felt led or more like COMPELLED to talk to this person, could be the very conversation that person needed to save their life! They might have been feeling depressed and unloved and just taking a moment to speak to them and making them feel important and alive, could be all it took! But you served! You could be putting your groceries in your car and notice someone who needs a little help. You run to their aid and help them. You served. You could volunteer with a place that helps the community. You served. You could help an injured animal or an abused abandoned animal. You served. All things great and small are beautiful to Him! We serve an awesome God and by serving Him, He uses us to serve His kingdom to represent Him!

Our willingness to serve Him in our own capacity and calling is what matters, but what matters most of our willingness, is if we do it with a joyful spirit! No one ever gets to a destination within society as a whole, or the Body of Christ in particular, where they are just too important to serve others in the ordinary tasks of this life. In fact, one of the chief characteristics of a servant is that they serve downward, meaning, they serve to those who are beneath them in position or station in life by the world’s standards. The operative word here being the WORLD'S standard. It is relatively easy to serve those above us, like our boss, supervisor, pastor, or anyone in authority above us. Even the world expects this kind of serving. But Jesus didn't serve upwards, He served downward. Quite apart from His deity, He was, on a strictly human level, the leader of that band of twelve apostles. He could have asked one of the disciples to wash all their feet but He chose to do it Himself. Why? Because He came to SERVE and not BE served! Something we all could learn to be better at, wouldn't you say! Luke 22:27, "For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves." Jesus recognized that in the world, the lesser serves the greater. But though this may be true in the world, in the Body of Christ it is to be different. John 13:15, "For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you." 

Solomon’s son, King Rehoboam, didn't quite learn the lesson of serving downward. Shortly after ascending the throne of Israel, he was then approached by some of the people who were asking that the heavy yoke of taxation and forced labor be lightened. So as he was consulting the elders who had advised his father, Rehoboam was told, "If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your servants" (1Kings 12:7). However, Rehoboam didn't listen as many of us have done at some time or another. He did not learn to serve downward. As a result of not learning to serve downward and his disobedience, he lost ten of the twelve tribes from his kingdom and created an irreparable separation within the nation of God’s people. Take for instance a business owner. Someone who is high authority and runs the whole operation. They should have the attitude to serve their employees, to serve downward. By giving them fair wages, a good working environment, and a decent and fair place to earn their living, he is serving downward. He learned to serve downward. Studying the subject of servanthood in the Bible, I am struck by a number of instances where the servant was in a position ABOVE those he served, at least from the world’s point of view. Acts 20:34, "Yes, you yourselves know that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me." Wouldn't we expect Paul’s companions, actually those he was training in the ministry, to care for his needs? Sure we would in our world's view but Paul was a servant. He supplied their needs.

Seeing a need and tending to it is what serving is all about. But as the nature of man predicts, we find ourselves trying to pick and choose which person has the greater need and in reality, we CAN'T assess that because a hug to one person could mean the world to them just as much as a bag of food could mean the world to someone else. But it's not our choice to make anyway. If we see a need that is presented before us, then it's been passed through the hands of God first and given to us individually for His purpose and His plan! Let's just obey and not try to let our humanly side of assessing things get in our way. And I've known some people who purposely go out LOOKING for ways to serve but often MISS those opportunities because what WE see as a need may not be what the Lord is presenting to us. God will always place us in a position to fill a need, no matter what that need is or where it's found. Let God take care of the details, while you obey the way He leads you. Missed opportunities are a tragedy. That's why I don't suggest looking for every single opportunity because they can and will most likely be overlooked. Why? Because we're seeing, or trying to see, the needs through our eyes! Our worldly eyes. Some people don't think of a hug or just holding a door open for someone as serving. While others only see serving as a financial capability of providing food or clothing or necessities. Meeting someone's spiritual needs is also serving, so mentorship is also an act of serving downward as well. All of it is serving. All of it is GREAT in His eyes. And ALL of it should be done for the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ!

Look Passed YOU to See THEM!

Being the small pebble that starts the ripple is a wonderful thing! To watch how far your one act goes is amazing. To see a smile, a tear of happiness, a physical need met, a spiritual need met, a reached out hand, a shoulder to lean on or cry on, an ear to hear. It's all serving because God put you in the exact place that you are for a specific purpose, plan and divine appointment. My job was a divine appointment. I knew that going in but I was willing to serve in whatever capacity I could and no matter how difficult the circumstances were to end up being. It's where I was supposed to be, at the time that was appointed and for the specific people that I crossed paths with and for! Serving others usually requires no special talent, skills or ability as I've mentioned but it definitely does take a servant attitude to want to serve others and an observant eye to see what needs to be done. If we have the servant attitude, if we desire to want to serve others, then we can develop an observant eye. Having an observant eye is key to serving. The reason most of us don't see the opportunities to serve is that we're continually thinking about ourselves instead of others. Isn't this true? We haven't learned that we're to look not only to our own interests but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:4, "Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others."

Of course, we can't give ourselves a servant attitude, God is the ONLY one to give us a servant attitude. We can't change our hearts without Him but we are able to do those things which God ordinarily uses to change us. Like for instance, He uses Scripture, prayer, and obedience. We need to pray earnestly for God to give us the heart of a servant, and then we must obey. By this I mean that we need to respond to those opportunities that He places before us. We need to fill our minds with the Scriptures that teach servanthood. We can't pick and choose our occasions of serving others if we want God to give us a servant’s heart. He changes us in the midst of obedience and He chooses what is placed before us to serve Him in. We are also in need to learn to find opportunities to serve others who are above us. Like in our jobs, voluntary positions, or anyone else whom we fall under authority to. We have been placed in those positions to serve them as well. To carry out specific duties and assignments. We need to be able to carry out directions or instructions of those in authority above us. As we serve those whom God has placed over us in the Body of Christ, the most important character trait is that of faithfulness or trustworthiness. Can the person over us count on us to do the job or task which we have been given to do? Or will we through a lack of commitment to the task or job and fail to fulfill our responsibility? Are we going to work hard and prove ourselves or are we going to be a quitter and fail those who rely upon us by giving up? Few things are more distressing to someone in the position of responsibility of the work of others than to not be able to count on someone to do their job!  As Solomon observed with a visual, "Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble Is like a bad tooth and a foot out of joint." Proverbs 25:19! 

Commitment is a big contributor to serving and doing our own call in the kingdom! It doesn't matter if we are volunteering or being paid. It doesn't matter if we are walking in a store or letting someone move in front of us in the car. It doesn't matter if we are being called for the large things or the small things. What matters is our commitment to what we are doing, giving it all that we've got doing what God has placed before us. Our commitment to faithfulness is what it all boils down to. We are placed in situations, places, or in front of people for a purpose. We need to obey that purpose but we also need to be committed to follow through with the assignment. Had I walked out on that job I shared with you above, I'd have never completed the assignment! Oh and believe me, there was one vivid day that I nearly did just that....grabbed my keys, my coat and walk out. I got to the door. I glanced over my shoulder and I turned around and sat my happy self down at my desk! I was frustrated. I was hurt. I was feeling defeated. But I was also reminded that I was not doing this job for ME, but I was doing it for the Lord and it wasn't ME who got the job, it was Him who worked through all of the people to offer it to me! So, I had to be faithful in completing it day to day. That's all I did and that's all I asked Him to help me do. Just show me what I need to do TODAY. He would do just that. Some days, rare as they were, I was allowed to be silent and relaxed and just BE. I cherished those days but not nearly as much as all the lives that I touched in one way or the other. I will never know the extent of that assignment until I'm on the other side of this world! But I'm OK with what He allowed me to see sometimes during my tenure there but more after!

Writing under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, Paul said in 1 Corinthians 4:2, "Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful." and Jesus said in Luke 16:12, "And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own?" So you see, whether our responsibilities to serve have been given to us directly from God, through someone over us in our church or Christian organization, or through our direct supervisor in our worldly jobs, doesn't matter. In any of those cases, God requires that we be totally committed and faithful in carrying out our assigned or accepted responsibilities. I implore you to remember the servant attitude here because I've known some people, some mature Christians who wouldn't dream of doing something they feel is "beneath" them. Taking a job that you might not think you will like or that you think you're better than doing, for instance. If God is calling you to a job that you really think you are above taking and it's the very job that your biggest mission is awaiting, then you've not only disobeyed the Lord, but missed a great opportunity for things you will never know awaited you. Not to mention your lack of faithfulness to commitment.

Serving others is the result of truly realizing what Jesus did for us. He served others and He wants us to do the same thing! We actually want to tell everyone in the world about it, not just through what we say but also through what we do. So many people watch us and it's what they SEE before what they hear most of the times. Serving is a way to show the love of Jesus to a stranger. Serving others is the result of our deeply felt thankfulness. That’s really the motivation behind serving, or it should be anyway. That’s why we serve because it gives us a way to live IN thankfulness. Perhaps the most obvious of obvious benefits, is that serving others actually blesses others. When it's done completely selflessly, it has the power to change the world! Think of the blessings that would spread around this great big world! As far as practical benefits go, serving non-Christians opens them up to the Gospel and this is probably the biggest benefit of all. Serving others includes sharing the gospel, but that’s not all of it. It is the central component, yes. But serving others also includes the mundane stuff like taking pictures, playing cards, taking walks, picking up some limbs in your neighbors yard or baking cookies. It doesn't have to be earth shattering to be effective. It just has to have the fingerprint of God and the faithfulness of His willing servant! See, all of those mundane things add up in the long run. And someday someone, somewhere will notice and ask about it. And you’ll have opened someone to the gospel. How much is that worth? PRICELESS. Never underestimate the power of serving in whatever capacity the Lord has equipped YOU with! He will make it BIG to the person receiving it and that's what it's all about anyway!

1 Peter 4:11 tells us, "If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen." Even if no one else sees you, even if no one else cares, God sees and God cares! That may seem cliche' but it's not really because it's true. God truly does care and He definitely sees what is done in private because He tells us that it will be blessed in the open. Matthew 6:2-4, "Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. v3) But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, v4) that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly." We are not to boast before men because then it becomes about US and not the Lord. It's OK to share a deed with a trusted friend, to share an outcome or testimony. That isn't what this is saying. It's just important to know that God CARES and SEES it all! Because He does CARE!

And serving others encourages ourselves! Yes, it's true. Encouragement is amazing like this. When you encourage someone else, the same encouragement comes full circle back around to you. It’s a powerful side effect, and it works two ways. First, serving others often means learning amazing things and reminding others of these same amazing things. But in the process of learning and reminding others, you also remind yourself, which builds you up too! Take for example, sharing a bible verse with someone to encourage them in their time of need. Soon you’ll find that you’re actually building yourself up TOO because you’re in the Bible as well. Then secondly, the response from others is infectious. Now all of the responses won't be grand or elated, because sometimes people, well, they just won't care. But when they do, and when they express their gratitude, you’ll know that you contributed, through God’s grace and guidance, to their growth. And that is totally encouraging.

We should want to serve because of what all that God's done! The more we serve, the more God does. Such a beautiful cycle, isn't it! It just starts with one kind act....one pebble that makes a ripple! Infectious as it can be, but more so, the seeds it can plant, the roots it will grow, the tree that  will find strength. Our God is AMAZING!

Let's all vow to be that ONE pebble that starts the ripple. Let's let God use us each day, great and small, for what He needs us to individually do according to our hearts, desires, attitude and willingness! Changing the world one pebble at a time! We have the ability to serve so let's do it! Seek those opportunities that God places before you. You don't need to go looking for anything, just ask the Lord to present them to you and you will know them when they arrive!



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