Spirit Online
February 14, 2010
Quote
All service, true service, is about the spirit in which you do it more than it is about the action or activity. -Charles Fillmore, co-founder of Unity.
Scripture
Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. Philippians 2:4
Message
There is a story that tells of two rooms in which there is a delicious banquet on the table. In the one room, there are wails of anger and frustration as the people all have long knives and forks attached to their arms and can't eat the wonderful food, because they can't bend their arms to get it into their mouths. In the other room, there are smiles, laughter and joy and everyone is eating to their heart's delight even though they also have long knives and forks on their arms. The difference in this room is that everyone is using the knives and forks to feed the person on the other side of the table. It's the same situation, with a profoundly different result because in this second scenario, people have learned to feed, and serve, one another!
As this story illustrates, when we focus on our own happiness and well being, it leaves us feeling hungry, empty, sad and frustrated. But when we learn the importance and joy of feeding, serving and supporting others with kind actions and encouragement, that leads to greater peace, happiness and fulfillment for all of us. We may find happiness when we accumulate more money, a bigger house, better job, more fulfilling relationships and greater health. But there is more to life than getting and having – there is a balance that is created with giving and serving as well. Finding and achieving this balance brings us lasting happiness and fulfillment, peace of mind, a feeling of spiritual connection, and a sense of purpose and meaning.
Albert Schweitzer once said, “I may not know what your destiny is, but there is one thing I do know about you and that the only ones among us who will truly be happy are those who seek out and find how to serve.” Serving is about expressing more love, more compassion and more joy, and is more important to our physical, emotional and spiritual well being than we can imagine! There are many instances in the bible where Jesus modeled serving others. He showed us that it is a significant and important part of the spiritual work that we are here to do – caring for and supporting others is the work and responsibility of all human beings! We find in scripture over and over again that we are to love one another, honor, encourage, support, help build up and serve one another. The key is to do it with a loving heart, with compassion and joy. As Charles Fillmore is quoted above, true service is about the spirit in which you do it and is a shared blessing. An act of kindness anywhere helps the level of love everywhere – a kind of ripple connection we all share in. Have you noticed how good it feels when you do something nice for someone else? How about when someone does something nice for you – that feels good too doesn’t it? Now, what about when you are the observer of someone performing acts of kindness for another – shared blessings! The great German philosopher Goethe once said, “He who does nothing for others, does nothing for himself.” We are all connected, and there is a ripple effect of blessing for every one of us when we engage in act of kindness, love and service.
An important piece of being in service is to take great care to not do everything for someone, but rather do acts of support and kindness that will strengthen, touch and empower others. In doing everything for others, we actually take away their personal responsibility and it ends up weakening them. Performing acts of kindness that are thoughtful and unconditional, that help others to help themselves is the kind of service that Jesus modeled and encouraged us to be about. We each have our own unique gifts and ways that we can serve and express our love; we are not all called to do the same things. Take a moment to reflect on what ways you are being called to serve; what gifts are you feeling called to share with others. Allow those thoughts and ideas to come forth, and know that Spirit will guide you to those places where you can share and give that will bring you personal healing, and fulfillment. And know that as you serve with sincerity you bless others, and you will come away being blessed more than you could ever imagine!
We all want to be happy and want to be fulfilled, but it’s not just about getting and having. It’s about balancing that with giving and serving. God bless you!
Prayer
Living, loving presence, thank you for the opportunity to be of service. Thank you for the wisdom, guidance and strength to do what is mine to do, to be in the right and perfect place, to have everything I need to share my gifts and talents with those who are in need. Thank you God, and so it is, Amen.
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