Lord, Jesus Christ, teach me to pray.
Prepare yourself for the reading of the scripture by quieting yourself and asking God to speak to you through these words.
A Reading from the Gospel according to Mark [9:33-37]
Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all”. Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”
“Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” This Christian paradigm sits quite uncomfortably next to our Western ideals of “getting ahead” and “finishing first”. In any sporting event or competition, can you imagine wanting to come in last?. No! It’s humiliating. It embarrasses us deeply. We think that it tells the whole world that we are deficient in skills or intelligence, physically not good enough, or lacking in the character required to do better. How many of us would pray that God allow us to come in last and honestly mean it? I’m not sure that I have ever prayed that prayer. And why would Jesus want us to strive to be last? There may be many different answers to that question, but I think that I may know one. It is because it is in last place, in that childlike place, that we can most deeply experience our need for God. It is in that dependence and surrender to God that God can truly move in us and use us to be servants to the world.
Prayer Practice
I invite you to practice taking second place to all of the people that are a part of your life today. Just for today, let go of any ideas of rank or hierarchy that our secular culture tells us is the correct way. Instead, no matter who you meet, try to think of yourself as their servant. If you are a boss or manager, imagine that you are a servant to your employees. When someone serves you in a shop or restaurant, think of them as deserving all of your care and kindness, no matter how good a job they do or don’t do. If you find yourself thinking “that’s not right” or “they shouldn’t have” about someone or some situation, let it go and say a prayer of blessing for that person. Husband and wives, be servants to each other. To the best of your ability, put yourself second today or even last, remembering that this is the Way that Jesus taught. Each time you find the opportunity to practice this, remember to breathe a prayer such as “Jesus, I choose your Way.”
For your journal: In what ways were you able to practice being a servant today? What was difficult for you? What was easy? What would you like to say to Jesus about his Way and how you experienced it today?
No comments:
Post a Comment