Blessing Our Community - Day 4

DAY 4 - Wednesday, April 3, 2024

Luke 22:27
For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.

Scripture Insights
Recently, our family took a trip to Orlando, Florida, on an adventure to Disney World. I was fascinated when we entered the park, watching as thousands of others around us checked reality at the gate in order to immerse themselves in the fantasies each Disney experience offered. It was almost as if entire personas changed—from how they behaved to what they wore—to conform to the ways of the magic kingdom. As I get older, I find it more enjoyable to sit on a park bench and observe the characters walking by than to visit the attractions with my kids. And by “characters,” I don’t mean the ones employed by the park—I mean the guests! It is incredible how powerfully the Disney atmosphere can transform a person to adopt the ways of its kingdom.
In today’s scripture, Jesus quickly reminds the disciples how easy it is to conform to whatever kingdom we are leaning into at the moment. Even after Jesus intimately serves the Passover meal in the upper room, sharing the sig- nificance of the moment, they immediately fall back into a worldly mindset of power and position rather than recognizing that the way of God’s kingdom is humility and servitude.
As we look to bless our communities, let us remember Jesus’s example and the power of his influence to transform our lives to reflect the way of his king- dom through serving rather than being served.

Today’s Prayer
Dear Lord, as we strive to bless our communities, help us to shed worldly influences that entice us to pursue selfish ambitions that sabotage our witness. Transform our hearts to embrace humility and servitude, mirroring the ways of your kingdom. Guide us to serve others in our neighborhoods with love and selflessness, as exempli- fied by Jesus.

What is the Spirit saying to you today?

—Darren Reed Lead Pastor, One Hope Church of the Nazarene (Colorado)