“Anyone who wants to be my disciple must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honor anyone who serves me.” — John 12:26
You’ve noticed this. People who get things done do not sit. They’re called workaholics these days. More specifically, these people—and you may be one of them—are also your friends and family members who put in tremendous hours on work they’re passionate about.
During this earthly ministry, Jesus, who had more passion for love and life than anyone else, didn’t sit. With the exception of some teaching times in and around the temple, and this was the custom of the day that the teacher would sit during religious instruction time, Jesus, a servant leader, was on the move.
We who follow Jesus today are on the move, too. What I find exciting about ministry these days is that everybody in the church (or almost everybody in the church) gets that we are not supposed to be in the church beyond worship. Like Jesus, we are to be on the move. When Rev. Dr. Bonnie Bates, our Penn Northeast Conference Minister, came to our church pulpit a couple of weeks ago, she passionately shared a recent trip she and 21 other conference ministers had in Washington, D.C.. These conference ministers—this eclectic array of Jesus lovin’ people—were on the hill to talk with senators and representative about the budget appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security. Um. Yeah. That doesn’t sound very churchy, does it?
Maybe we should follow Jesus more to our nation’s capitol. And into the hard places. Into the ugly places. Into the forgotten and the “simply overlooked” places because this fundamental energizer, our servant leader, calls us to be where he is, and that’s in the presence of the voiceless, the powerless, the disenfranchised, the marginalized, the broken, and the lost.
PRAYER: Don’t let us get too comfortable, dear Jesus. Keep us moving. Amen.