It seems in this world we all go through stages in our life where we are in the situation where we can be of service to those around us, and there are other times when we need others to serve us. The question put to us last Wednesday night was- which is harder serving or being served?
Looking at the different aspects I really think that for many people being served is a difficult thing to do and accept graciously. I think a reason for this, especially in the case of those of us who have always been able to cope with things themselves, is that it is difficult to admit we need help.
I can think of two different cases where the two people involved have lead very giving lives. They were the 'servers' as such. Where they could be of service they would always be some of the first people to put there hand up in order to help others. Now they are going through different stages of life where it is difficult for them for various reasons. And now it is time for others to step up and serve them but does it happen, not really because people just don't realise that these people need that extra support because it is so hard for them to ask for it.
It is frustrating to me to see 'those that make the loudest noise receive the greatest attention'. I am not suggesting that we don't help those people but I think that it is our duty to look out for those that need our help but don't have the courage to ask.
There is so many stupid saying along the line of 'if you don't ask, you don't get' but this is not true in God's plans. Yes many people went directly to Jesus and asked for his help but many people were also sort out by him because he was able to see that they needed help. A good example is the woman who touched Jesus as he walked by. She could have called out like many of the people did but she tried to keep her need quiet. I understand her for this- if I were continually bleeding with menstrual issues I would rather not broadcast it to the world but Jesus didn't draw attention to her act as a means of embarrassing her. He applauded her for her faith and made it clear that there was no problem that could not be brought to others attention when someone was in need of help.
Yes, often times we suffer from things that others don't particularly like to hear about and because of that we don't want to seek out the help that we need. Sometimes people do such a good job of hiding their troubles or needs that they don't give us the opportunity to serve them but here is the challenge- we need to be intimate with our family, friends, church family so that we can see their needs.
Yes I definitely believe that being served is a difficult thing to accept but I hope that others will watch me closely enough that they will know when I need some help because I will most certainly be watching you:
1 comment:
This topic came up in one of our Bible classes lately and I made the observation that we often don't GIVE people a chance to serve by "holding onto" jobs we've had for ages. There are teachers who have "owned" a specific class for so long that they don't give it up to allow someone else to hone their teaching skills. That sort of thing.
And then there are the "help-seeking-refusers" (a literal term in the field of psychology by the way) who complain about everything under the sun but, when offered a solution or help, have a million reasons why it won't work.
So our graciousness in accepting help is just as much a service as being the one who extends service. If we refuse help, we are being prideful in actuality - we are saying "I can do this myself" and put ourselves above others as well as God.
Good post!
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