SERVING OUR WAY TO GREATNESS

In today’s gospel, Jesus provides us a servant-leadership model and what greatness entails. He deconstructs the form of glory-grasping and egocentric leadership that is prevalent in our world today. He is a leader who came not to be served but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many. This radically differs from those considered leaders and rulers in Jesus' time. Even in our time and society, we still experience modern dictators, quasi-dictators, and leadership styles far from anything associated with servant-leaders in family circles, church, and the rest of society. Jesus wants us, his followers, to emulate him and appreciate the importance of service. What he offers us as a standard is refreshing as it improves our communities and societies. Let us heed his call and bring about a positive change in our communities.

James and John, Zebedee's sons, who requested cherished positions in the Lord’s glory, represent us whenever we try to focus on and get obsessed with vainglory and self-relevance. It is a human thing that we often strive to be in authoritative positions and perhaps to have others under our control. It could feel satisfying to massage our egos by clinging to such positions of authority and having the ability to give orders that our subordinate (s) or those we consider as one must obey. Occupying positions of authority is not an issue here. The question is, what is our moral outlook towards authoritative positions? Do we use such positions to serve and dignify others, or are such positions opportunities to assert our self-importance and worth? Today, many people tend to compete among themselves for wealth, power, and influence. There seems to be a race for ostentation and cheap popularity. It is only helpful to remind ourselves that we are not of the world, though we live in the world. We are urged to appropriate this Christ-centered servant-leader model to our lives in the family, church, and society.

In family life, we thank God for the many parents who live a life of service, caring for their children and others in the footsteps of Christ. These parents have a godly sense of authority and exercise it in exemplary ways among themselves and towards their children. In good Christian families, partners help themselves with housekeeping, grocery shopping, cooking, and all other things to ensure stability and progress and ensure the family remains a place of love, happiness, and peace. This is what the Lord has taught us to do. We continue to encourage all those who struggle with this servant-leadership lifestyle to strive to embrace it and experience its beauty. Dear friends, may we be inspired to discover the joy of serving one another and making sacrifices for one another. In this joy, we find our true greatness, and in the fulfillment of it, we find our true purpose.

In the church, we acknowledge all the great people whose efforts sometimes go unnoticed but who serve in various capacities, ensuring our worship of God is noble, seamless, and beautiful. The Lord sees and blesses you all. We continually remind ourselves of the need to find a small but qualitative way to offer our gift of service within our worshipping community. Each of us, in our unique roles, is integral to our church's functioning and communal spirit. Your unique role is not only important, but it is essential to the collective mission of the body of Christ. There is always room to improve the quality of our service within our communities. How wonderful our society would be if we imbibed what the Lord teaches us and lived it out in our workplaces and in all segments of society. A truly great person is one who is obsessed with dignifying others and improving the quality of their lives with his or her service. In Jesus Christ, we have a high priest who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses and proclivity to vanity and self-interest. He is our hope for forgiveness and a fresh start when we derail from the standard he has given us. Let us always make recourse to him so that we may overcome our temptations as he did. May we experience the rich rewards and personal growth from serving others. Amen!

Baby Bulldogs

Registration is Now Open!

Baby Bulldogs is a weekly meeting for infants, toddlers and their caregivers.  There will be free play followed by music and movement.

Where: Saint Andrew Gymnasium

When: Thursdays from 9:00 am - 9:45 am

Dates: October 10th through December 19th (no class on November 28th)

Cost: $75.00 for one child, $125.00 for two or more children

Register here​​​​​​​

If you have any questions, please contact Anne Japsen at annejapsen@gosaintandrew.com

We look forward to seeing you there!

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