Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:5-7 ESV

DEVOTION

One of the reasons I love being a part of Crossings Kids ministry is I’m often reminded of simple truths that can get lost in lofty thinking and the grind of day-to-day life. I want to ask you a question: “Why does serving matter to the child of God?” 

The answer to that question lies in a recent series we had in Crossings Kids ministry. 

In August, Crossings Kids did a series called Top 3. This series taught Bible reading, prayer, and service as the top three ways kids can build their relationship with Jesus and, as children, how they can begin to Build a Life That Matters. We taught the kids serving helps us imitate Jesus.

In Philippians 2, Paul talks about the humility of Jesus and writes that Jesus emptied himself and took the very nature of a servant. If Jesus took this approach, then our lives should model this, too, and should resemble his life of service. As followers of Christ, the life that matters and the only thing we should be striving for is to have our life look like that of our Savior. 

For the past few weeks, Senior Pastor Marty Grubbs has been going through a series titled Build a Life That Matters. This series emphasizes our belief that as followers of Christ, we should be gathering as one body, cultivating a growing faith in Christ, and going out and shining the light of Jesus to our world. 

Serving is something that encompasses all three of these areas. There is a sense of gathering that happens when people are serving together. Some of the best community I have found has come from teams I have served with. Growth happens when you take the knowledge you have learned and apply it in a tangible way. And when you serve, you are sacrificing your time and your efforts to be an imitator of Jesus. 

This is not something that is only reserved for Sundays and Wednesdays. Serving is an essential part of our identity as children of God. We may be the only picture of Jesus to people who might never set foot in a church, who don’t follow the Word of God, or care about the Scriptures. 

We look different when we have a mindset of service, seeking to be like Jesus by doing the very thing he spent his time on Earth doing! Wake up each day with a servant mindset, knowing we’re not serving for praise from others, but serving because we are called to be imitators of Jesus. 

PRAYER

Jesus, 

Instill within us a heart of service. Help us serve those around us just like you did. And through our service, we pray people would not see us, but they would see your heart and your love for them. 

Amen! 

Ross Blythe

Crossings KIDS Creative Coordinator - Crossings Edmond

rblythe@crossings.church

Ross Blythe is the Crossings Kids Creative Coordinator at Crossings Edmond. He loves getting to share the love of Jesus with kids.

RESOURCES

• Build a Life That Matters series
• Crossings Volunteer Interest Form
• "Yes I Will" worship song