Listen

Before the Festival of Passover, Jesus knew that his time had come to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them fully.

Jesus and his disciples were sharing the evening meal. The devil had already provoked Judas, Simon Iscariot’s son, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew the Father had given everything into his hands and that he had come from God and was returning to God. So he got up from the table and took off his robes. Picking up a linen towel, he tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a washbasin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he was wearing.

After he washed the disciples’ feet, he put on his robes and returned to his place at the table. He said to them, “Do you know what I’ve done for you? You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you speak correctly, because I am. If I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you too must wash each other’s feet. I have given you an example: Just as I have done, you also must do.”

John 13:1-5, 12-15

Think

In a world that so often places priority on being “the best” in sports, school, work, etc. and encourages us to stand out, be better than everyone else, and win, win, win, Jesus has a different message: serve one another.

Yes, healthy competition can be meaningful, excellent education can open up opportunities, and the hard work people do produces many benefits for the world. But at the end of the day, the center of our faith is not about being excellent but about serving others.

This can happen in any aspect of our lives: school, politics, work, athletics, church. So today, let’s all take a moment to see where we are already serving others and then ask ourselves where there may be moments when we could be able to serve even more.

Bruce Reyes-Chow

Pray

God, give me the courage to serve more and be served less, and in all that I do, let me have a heart, mind, and soul for service. Amen.

Go

Go forth into the world with justice and compassion in your heart.

Give voice to the silent.
Give strength to the weak.
Hear one another.
See one another.
Care for one another.
And love one another.

It’s all that easy.
And it’s all that hard.