They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, "What were you arguing about on the road?" But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest. Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, "If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all." —Mark 9:33-35

We live in a self-absorbed, self-centered world. That's why there is so much unhappiness in the world. It seems to me that happy people are others-centered people and that unhappy people tend to be I-centered. The Bible constantly challenges us to be a servant, to think of others rather than ourselves. Albert Schweitzer was a person who knew a lot about serving. He was a missionary doctor in Africa for years. Here's what he had to say about becoming a servant.

“I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know—the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.”

If you've been feeling unhappy and unfulfilled lately, perhaps it's time to take an evaluation of your life. Are you I-centered or others-centered? Your decision will affect your destiny. The road to happiness is the road of service.

1. What two things do Mark 9:33-35 tell us we must be if we want to be first?

2. In what ways are you a servant of all? Ask God to give you opportunities to be a servant today.

Mark 10:45 NIV

(45)  For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

 

Philippians 2:3-5 NIV

(3)  Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,

(4)  not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

(5)  In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: