Serve One Another In Love

Serve one another in love.  Galatians 5:13

We walk a delicate line in our house between encouraging our children to both serve and to let others serve them.  Each child wants to pour their own glass of milk, but one wants to pour for everyone.  Since there is really no wrong answer here, I am completely inconsistent, and the whole thing can be a little maddening.  I used to lean more toward independence, everyone doing for themselves, but I have recently shifted my focus on the issue to the words from Paul’s letter to the Galatians, “Serve one another in love.” 

My kids don’t get to do that enough.  I don’t know that I get to do that enough.  Between teaching three grade levels and trying to manage the rest of the house, I feel pretty accomplished in the serving part most days; it’s the love part I think I may be missing out on.  I too often grump because I have to do this or that, instead of rejoicing in the fact that God has blessed my day with the chance to serve my children in every aspect of their lives.  What else could I possibly spend my day doing that is more meaningful? 

A willingness to serve is one of the things I want to instill in my children.  But if I want it to be a life long joy for them, I have to help them discover the everyday chances that they have to serve, and I have to model a servant’s heart myself.  I haven’t been very good at that lately.  Today, I start again today, knowing that I am forgiven for the mistakes of yesterday.  I start today, teaching my children that the opportunity to serve another child of God is a gift.  I start today showing them that serving one another in love is exactly what Jesus did for us, and in thankfulness to him, we will do it for one another.

Heavenly Father,

The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.  I often look upon serving others as a hardship or an inconvenience.  Forgive me.  Where I have opportunities to serve, help me do so in love.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.