11.14.2020 - week 80
“for even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve,
and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
mark 10:45
kristen is a great servant. she gives her whole heart to doing whatever our family needs day in and day out. she is tireless in working for the good of those around her. she is giving her life for the good of others.
dr. king was also a great servant. he led loud and spoke truth to power in a way that made great change for his people and the world. he gave his life for the good of others.
servanthood is not about being anonymous or famous, it’s about doing what those around you need.
we hear the word servant and pivot to domestic workers or invisible housekeepers. and certainly those people can be servants. but if the point of mark 10 is that jesus is the ultimate servant, kinda tough to make the case that there is something inherently ideal about being under the radar.
someone isn’t a servant because of how anonymous they choose to be, but rather because of how much they subject their own desires to the necessities of others. you are a servant when you leverage
our world has such a complex relationship with notoriety these days. so many people crave it, yet loathe those who have it. so many people admire those who are known, yet also resent them for it. my suggestion is to separate your assessment of the servanthood of others from how well known they are for it.
KG Korner
(a few wise words from lady kristen macdonald)
Luke 6:32-6:34 says, “If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount.”
When we moved into our house in LA I was given a project even though I didn’t know it. Moments within moving in we met our neighbors on our right. They were kind and happy and the wife and mom that lived there ended up being a Godsend for me as I got the kids into a school. Every time we saw them they smiled and asked how we were doing and even gifted the kids with a Christmas gift.
On our left is a different story. We met the woman because our garbage bins weren’t put in their proper spot and she was correcting us but “isn’t normally like that.” A few weeks later she came to our door stewing because our boys were playing outside in the alley way that we share. She was saying that they shouldn’t do that and that our boys gave her boyfriend a dirty look and well, you get the idea. She continued to take her concerns to the HOA meeting and the other neighbors to get people against us. The unkindness has continued with all sorts of scenarios but I could just focus on those or focus on what God wants to do in me through this particular source.
I don’t know about you but usually God puts people in my life to remind me how much I need his love and help. As this verse says, it's easy to love the neighbors that are always happy and kind but anybody can do that! As I began to see this assignment on my heart from God, this saying my grandfather used to say comes to mind, “I can’t say it has been easy because it ain’t” It has grown and stretched me. As I have prayed for her and asked the Lord why ‘I got the gift of living next door to her,’ I feel like God has asked me to have compassion on her. My gut is that she is really hurting inside and her unkindness is coming out of a lot of pain and hurt.
Growth only comes when the pain of staying the same is more than the pain of the change. Chances are you read this newsletter to grow or stimulate your thinking as a Christian. And quite honestly I find my own whining about my neighbor annoying, so either I had to try and show kindness (at the very least) or stay in my own bubble and be a victim of her actions.
I have a hunch that God has given you a combination of neighbors like he has me. They might be at work or at your kid’s sports teams or your actual neighbors but where is God asking you to love where it is difficult. You might be the only source of kindness that person receives today - let’s love our neighbors better together.
parent corner
one of the best and most infuriating thing about kids is how they can always pivot to fun and delight. this week my boys figured out how to play a football game in a 40 sq ft room. a hotel bed is immediately a kingdom to conquer. someone miss states a word and it turns into a 10 minute joke. one of those dopey car wash suckers becomes the greatest thing on the planet for a second. one of my flaws as a parent is to be on task to the expense of delighting in little moments. most of life is the in-between and a careful study of jesus reveals that most of his work was done in the interruptions and in-between moments of life.
perhaps one of the things jesus had in mind when he said that we must ‘become like little children’ is the incredible ability they have to take joy in the moment w. no concern for the past or future. sure seems like we would all do well to take that to heart right now...
book review
the premise of this book is that surveys of human behavior (even when anonymous) are inherently untrustworthy because people don’t tell the truth about themselves. the authors proof unfolds from a study of google search data. because our searches are private and not tracked, in them we see a truer picture of ourselves. broadly, the book is about the power and limitations of big data in a world obsessed with it. i found lots of helpful insights … if you like freakonomics or gladwell books, there’s a lot here for you.
super christian guy
stuff for you to click on
1. my mid-week service this week i think will be an encouragement to you. its a punchy 45 minutes of music + teaching. watch it here!
2. my knucklehead sons argue extensively about the 2nd half of the NFL Season in their new video, i think you will dig it. watch it here!