Chief Cook and Bottle Washer

"And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, 'If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.'”  Mark 9:35

In our current culture of ladder climbing, being first in line, head of the table, and looking out for number one, it seems many Christians have forgotten this principle that Jesus taught us:  We are to be last and to serve others.

It's nothing new.  Jesus admonished the scribes for wanting "the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts" (Luke 20:46, ESV).  Even the disciples struggled with this principle.  The mother of James and John, sons of Zebedee, asks Jesus to grant that her sons sit one on His right and one on His left in the Kingdom.

Growing up, my mother didn't work outside the home.  There was plenty to do inside it.  When people asked her what she did for a living, she would say that she was Chief Cook and Bottle Washer, and she was never ashamed of what the world often considered the lowly position of caring for her family.  She knew Jesus saw her.

He saw the shepherds, too.

And Mary.

And that shepherd boy, David.

And a slave named Hagar.

And an orphan named Esther.

And Joseph.

And He sees you, too, in whatever position you may find yourself.  The key is to humbly serve Him and others from a pure heart.  We should always bloom wherever God plants us.

Proverbs 22:4 says, "The reward for humility and fear of the Lord is riches and honor and life" (ESV).

Goodnight, Runners.