{"id":6097,"date":"2018-11-19T16:23:13","date_gmt":"2018-11-19T22:23:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedisciplemaker.org\/?p=6097"},"modified":"2018-11-19T16:23:13","modified_gmt":"2018-11-19T22:23:13","slug":"the-ripple-effect-of-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2018\/11\/the-ripple-effect-of-service\/","title":{"rendered":"The Ripple Effect of Service"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

The amazing thing about service is that it rarely returns void, even if we don\u2019t see the end results ourselves. Service has a way of inspiring others to see the areas of need around them and step out of their comfort zone to help someone else. My husband Eugene and I saw this happen in a beautiful way during one particular season of serving.<\/p>\n

The Life of Your Church<\/h4>\n

Our friend David and his wife Janet were in our church from the very beginning. She was our organist. Theirs was a blended marriage; they each had three children. Tragically, Janet got cancer and passed away, leaving David with all those children to care for. David had a good job and was working in Baltimore, but before Janet died, the company got moved to the West Coast. His hands were tied. He couldn\u2019t move his dying wife and kids at that time, so he ended up getting a job that financially didn\u2019t allow him and the children to stay in their house. At first, the grandmother took the kids up to Pennsylvania, where she lived, but they were very unhappy there. They were used to living in their hometown, and they wanted to be with their father. So my dear, blessed husband said to David, \u201cWell, we\u2019ll take them in.\u201d Two of the children had already left home, so we welcomed the younger four\u2014three boys and one girl\u2014into our home, in addition to our three children. Our daughter, Karen, was ten, and our boys were two and three years younger than her. It was a houseful! We only had three bedrooms. Thankfully, by that time, the church had been built, so we no longer had anyone in the basement. The whole basement was empty except for Eugene\u2019s workshop and study. We put the boys down in the basement, and the girl shared a bedroom with Karen.<\/p>\n

Full House<\/h4>\n

Those children were with us for about three months. And it went okay. The septic tank overflowed, so we had to figure out what to do there. We carted the kids back and forth to the church to use the bathroom! That\u2019s the thing about service: It\u2019s not easy. A lot of times, you\u2019re going to serve when you don\u2019t feel up for it. I had to fix seven school lunches when we really couldn\u2019t afford to buy lunch for everybody. There I was in the morning, preparing all these lunches and getting breakfast for the kids and sending them to the schoolbus\u2014it was overwhelming! So Eugene organized the kids so they helped with packing their lunches. But you get tired in the midst of a heavy service season, when you wonder, How long?
\nBut here\u2019s what bolstered us in the midst of that season: As we were living sacrificial service, the church began to do the same. Prior to this, Eugene had tried to get people in the church aware of others who were going through a hard time. He\u2019d make phone calls, asking for things like meals for new parents, trying to create a community of service. No one seemed to want that sort of community.
\n\"\"<\/p>\n

Service Creates a Community of Giving<\/h4>\n

But then we took in the children. The church couldn\u2019t believe it. People seemed overtaken by the idea of service\u2014and they started pitching in. People started bringing food to the front door. The deacons said, \u201cWe can\u2019t let the Petersons just feed these kids out of their living,\u201d so they started giving us extra money for food. Somebody gave us bunk beds and a cot for the boys. And, sweetly, a family in the church invited David to come and live with them until he could get a place for both him and the kids.
\nWhen we had been longing for community, community suddenly appeared. That\u2019s because service creates a community of giving. We never had to make another phone call.<\/p>\n

A Life of Serving<\/h4>\n

When I think about being a servant, serving in Jesus\u2019 name, I am reminded of a favorite verse from Luke 1:37-38. The angel Gabriel was visiting Mary, telling her she would be the mother of Jesus, \u201cSon of the Highest.\u201d And he also told her about her cousin Elizabeth, who was old and barren but was now pregnant with a son. The angel said, \u201cNothing, you see, is impossible with God.\u201d And Mary said, \u201cYes, I see it all now: I\u2019m the Lord\u2019s maid, ready to serve. Let it be with me just as you say.\u201d And so this should be our attitude as well! Whether we are serving the Lord or serving others in our families and friendships, our service should be unfettered, open, and willing. It\u2019s such a strong response. We should be ready to spring into action, loving our friends in concrete and active ways. Just like Mary, we should have the courage to serve where God calls us, not in the ways the people around us expect. And we should be humble and willing to accept the help and service of others, just as Mary accepted the love and service of Elizabeth, who encouraged and lifted up Mary in the midst of a time when no one else understood her.
\nMay we all have the desire to serve God in Mary\u2019s spirit! Fiat mihi\u2014may it be unto me. Amen.
\n\"\"<\/a>
\nYou have just read a portion of chapter 3 from the book,\u00a0Becoming Gertrude: How Our Friendships Shape Our Faith<\/em><\/a>\u00a0by Janice Peterson.<\/p>\n

Want to learn more about spiritual friendship?\u00a0This little book<\/a>\u00a0by the wife of beloved author and pastor Eugene Peterson will warm your spirit and strengthen your resolve to build meaningful friendships.<\/h5>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The amazing thing about service is that it rarely returns void, even if we don\u2019t see the end results ourselves. Service has a way of inspiring others to see the areas of need around them and step out of their … <\/p>\n

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