21"What is it you want?" he asked. She said, "Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom."
22"You don't know what you are asking," Jesus said to them. "Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?" "We can," they answered.
23Jesus said to them, "You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father."
24When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers. 25Jesus called them together and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
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At one time I used to think "greatness" was defined by the "American Dream" of obtaining vast amounts of wealth, power and respect of those who did the same. For some reason I could never obtain all three at the same time.
When I was respected by the rich and powerful, I was poor and struggling but I could give them something they wanted, thus the respect. When I had vast amounts of power, those who had the same became threatened that my power was absorbing theirs.
When I had vast amounts of money the "Joneses" demanded I had more by acquiring the latest style, trinket or gadget. It seemed like my quest for greatness was never ending.
Then I read this passage and it was very strange to me. JESUS was the lowest man whoever walked the earth. HE had no possessions, no home and was ridiculed and lied about wherever HE went.
I don’t want that! I mean, who wants to be ridiculed! I like the respect of those who envy my status. Right? Well, not necessarily. The shallow conversations about more trinkets and garments get old after a while.
- The hole in my heart to please my LORD and savior gets bigger when I try to fill it with stuff.
- The quest for power exhausts me because once "obtained" its a struggle to "maintain."
- The respect of the wealthy is always fleeting because of their paranoia.
So how do I become great? Serve. Okay, so I tried it. I shoveled my neighbors walkway. It felt good. They thanked me, the end. Am I great yet GOD? Can I have my earthly status back? A feeling came over me, "Not yet." "Do it again, this time for all your neighbors."
You have got to be kidding! Do the whole block? "Yes, and pray for each household as you do it." Well, what about me? I need stuff too! Who is praying for me? As the silence grew I obeyed. At first it was fun, but after the 50th time it became old.
Neighbors stopped thanking me. Newspapers hidden by deep snow clogged my snow blower. The cold seemed colder. "Why am I doing this?" I asked myself. Where is my greatness?
Then one day a neighbor stopped and said "My children asked, why does he do that for everyone and I told them because he's a Christian and he is the best example on this block." As she rolled up her window and drove away, it hit me. Greatness is not defined by "pats" on the back or rewards or accolades of man.
GOD uses our servant hood to point people to HIM. The more I seek respect, wealth and fame here on earth, the more disappointed I will be. The more I seek GOD's desires, the more satisfied I will be. It's funny... The empty hole in my heart filled up that day.
- Are you seeking "greatness" by human standards?
- Are you tired and worn out seeking this type of greatness?
- Have you served others lately in spite of your situation?
- Do you do things "for GOD" to get noticed "by GOD" or humans?
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