It’s YOUR Serve – Ten Barriers that Block Christians From Serving
January is Poverty Awareness Month. Here at It’s Only Homeschooling we are celebrating our passion for outreach with our Salt & Light Spotlight series honoring H.earts I.n M.otion and exploring ways to help you cultivate a heart for service in your home.
In our three-part “It’s YOUR Serve” series we will look at the barriers that block Christians from serving, examine reasons behind why you should teach about stewardship, service, and outreach in your home, and outline steps to cultivating a servant’s heart in your family.
What’s Blocking YOUR Serve?
Today in part one, we will examine some attitudes, beliefs, and fears that may be hindering our service efforts.
Obstacle # 1: It wasn’t emphasized in our families of origin.
My late mama was generous almost to a fault. If Mama had a dollar, she’d give ninety-nine cents to someone she felt had a greater need. If she didn’t have a dollar, she’d open her door and welcome you to a meal at her table.
My late daddy was a giant in stature but gentle in disposition. Born of humble beginnings, he valued education, personal responsibility, and self-reliance.
While their outward expressions of philanthropy differed, my parents were in accord with their love of the Lord. They served in their ways but with equal commitment.
While I like to think my parents did a pretty good job of laying the foundation for philanthropy, I freely admit that my efforts have ebbed and flowed throughout my life. (I am sure theirs did, too).
I know I am not alone in this struggle. Seeking insight into my fickle service record, curiosity beckoned me to investigate further.
Obstacle # 2: We fail to understand our role as carers of God’s earth, people, and creation.
Our duty to serve both God and man is emphasized throughout scripture.
The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.
Genesis 2:15
And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Genesis 1:28
As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.
I Peter 4:10
“We were saved to serve,” writes Ron Bartanen in Perspective: Saved to Serve. He continues, “We who, by the grace of God, are saved in Christ, were saved not just that we might go to heaven, but that also we might work the works of God. A believer’s life should be of use to God and man.”
Jesus said, “I must work the works of Him that sent me while it is day: the night cometh when no man can work.”
John 9:4
As Christians, we are to be the hands and feet of Christ, emulating his efforts during our time here on earth.
Obstacle # 3: Just because we are in the midst of our storm, does not mean we cannot help someone else “weather” theirs.
Being willing and ready to serve the Lord means you may be called upon to serve others when it is inconvenient at best and difficult at worst.
In an interview for Christian Headlines, former CEO of Duncan Donuts Robert Rosenberg challenged journalist, minister, and public speaker Maina Mwaura to stretch in surrender when it comes to service. During the interview, Rosenberg shared his mission to become a servant leader within his company. Mwaura writes,
Another area in which Rosenberg challenged me was the readiness to serve at all times. I must admit, this is hard to do, in fact, I would have been one of the disciples of the feeding of the 5,000 who would have questioned Jesus on what he was asking me to do. As Christ-followers, however, we need to be ready to serve others, meet the needs around us, and share the light of God.
Maina Mwaura, Why Christians Should Desire to Serve Others
Obstacle # 4: We assume someone else will do it.
You’ve seen the montages. Flashing across the screen during a commercial from your favorite program or emblazoned across a larger screen at church. Groups of volunteers in matching brightly colored t-shirts, hard at work. Cleaning up debris, serving food, building wheelchair ramps, or handing out a meal to an unsheltered person to name a few.
As the images gleam before your eyes, a range of thoughts may enter your mind.
“Wow! Look at all the amazing work our church is doing!”
“Man, those folks are making a difference.”
“That’s awesome. The Serve Team is killing it.”
And,
“They probably have plenty of volunteers.”
I know these are just a few of the thoughts I have experienced when witnessing the efforts of our church’s Serve Team.
The reality is service opportunities are an embarrassment of riches. There is always a need for willing participants. We all have a role we can play.
Obstacle # 5: We struggle with balance.
As a child, I was the little girl with the “S” on her chest convinced she was going to save the world (if only she could first reach the cereal on the top shelf of the pantry).
I joined a service organization in high school and was blessed with a scholarship for my efforts. Throughout college, I studied psychology and worked alongside my parents at a faith-based outreach program. After completing graduate school, I continued to work in various community agencies, including my first job as a therapist in a juvenile detention center.
At work, I fired on all cylinders.
All. The. Time.
I took lunch breaks at my desk, carried a pager for twenty-six weeks out of the year, answered phone calls all hours of the night, and worked holidays and weekends. During the times I wasn’t on call, my kids and the struggles inherent to working in an inpatient facility were never far from my mind. I went years without a vacation.
I served daily on the job, but not so much in the church. In hindsight, I viewed my time after work as “my time.”
Looking back, I see now how the burnout I endured was due to my inability to set proper boundaries and work to maintain balance.
Balance is a funny thing. We all want it. We all strive for it.
Yet, I believe most of us fail to fully understand it. (Present company included.)
Balance is not a static concept. Quite the opposite. Ironically, most of us fail to notice the times when we are in a state of equilibrium. Life is running smoothly and we run right along with it. It is only when a curve ball gets thrown our way and upsets our apple cart, that we take notice of the discord to our harmony.
When we struggle with balance, adding service to the mix feels like putting one more thing on our already overfilled plates. But if we can shift our thinking a bit and come to an understanding that balance is a constant, dynamic ongoing process rather than an end-all goal to be achieved, then we can ebb with the flow, lean into the curves, and bend in the wind.
Obstacle # 6: We aren’t sure where to begin.
Sometimes we take a look around at all that needs to be done and we feel so overwhelmed that we simply do nothing. Looking at all of the brokenness in God’s beautiful world can be incredibly discouraging. So discouraging in fact until rather than start small, we concede defeat without ever joining the fight to begin with.
We forget that we are servants, not saviors.
Christ, while a servant of others, was the only Savior.
Perspective is key. We are not going to eradicate homelessness, stop world hunger, or end global poverty with a bag of donated clothing, a hot cup of coffee, or a single meal.
But even a hundred-foot journey begins with a single step.
Helping build a ramp for someone with mobility issues to improve ease of access into his or her home can be life-changing. Praying over someone who is in the throes of grief after losing a loved one can be a light in the darkness. Removing debris in weather-worn areas after a storm, restores hope amid devastation and despair.
Obstacle # 7: We underestimate our ability to help.
When I scan through the Rolodex of memories in my life and search under “S” for Servant’s Heart, one person comes to mind immediately, “Mr. Carl.” After thirty-plus years of military service (and a few extras in the civilian sector for good measure), “Mr. Carl” showed absolutely no signs of slowing up after his second retirement.
When I first met Mr. Carl, I was in my late teens, and he his late sixties. In my early years of college, I was working alongside my mom and stepdad at a local nonprofit organization in my hometown. Mr. Carl was a volunteer there, doing whatever was needed from serving as a board member, driving the donation collection truck, or speaking at fundraising events.
Once a year, Mr. Carl would take several months of sabbatical that he genuinely referred to as “vacation.” During these “breaks,” he would travel on mission trips, building churches all over the world. Most of us would consider these excursions as anything but a “holiday.” (I know my ideas of vacation are vastly different).
As a young person, looking at Mr. Carl’s example, I felt a bit well, inept. And intimidated. I mean, even his “time off” was spent in service of others!
Oftentimes we see others accomplishing majestic feats of service, such as repeated mission trips, and we feel as though we have nothing to offer in comparison. Beware of the comparison trap! Acts of service do not have to be grand gestures. Even the smallest acts of kindness can carry the greatest weight.
The simple act of handing out bottles of water on a hot day to someone struggling with home insecurity goes much further than quenching thirst. It demonstrates compassion by recognizing as humans, we all have a basic need to be seen and to know we matter. That we are all God’s children, worthy of unconditional love and care.
Obstacle # 8: We confuse practicing humility with eating humble pie.
What if we have served before? Maybe lots of times! But…
And it’s a BIG BUT…
But, things did not quite go as we planned.
Sometimes our volunteer experiences do not go quite the way we thought they would or even should. Maybe we build up the experiences beforehand in our minds of how “wonderful” helping others is going to be (because it is and can be), but we tend to forget that we are flawed humans working with other flawed humans helping other flawed humans in a chaotic world.
Personalities clash. Tempers flare. Discomforts abound. Difficult circumstances become even more challenging with hidden “hiccups” and unexpected challenges throwing monkey wrenches into any sort of “strategy” we thought we had. (They are called tests and trials for a reason.)
We throw our hands up in frustration and decide this just “isn’t for us.” We tried, right?
Discouraged. We shy away from service.
What we need is a good helping of “humble pie.”
When most of us think of eating “humble pie,” we think of it in the context of someone serving it to us in a demeaning way to degrade or shame us. But humiliation is not the same as humility. We can choose to eat humble pie, not as a form of flagellation or self-punishment but as an act of complete and utter trust. As an act of surrender to God.
In acts of service, we choose humility.
We say, “OK Lord here I am, use me as you will. No matter what comes my way, I am going to stay the course. I have a purpose. You have the plan. I trust you.”
I endeavor to keep “humble pie” on the menu to remind me to be the passenger in my life, not the driver.
The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
Matthew 23:11-12
Obstacle # 9: We fear doing the wrong thing.
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind
1 Timothy 2:7, KJV
Sometimes having a generous spirit is not the issue. Sometimes it is fear that stands in our way.
Fear of perpetuating bad habits, enabling addictions, or being taken advantage of. Fear of opening our hearts up to hurt. Fear of failure.
In this case, we should consider ways in which we can serve others well.
In an article for Experience Mission.org, Abbie Thiebaut speaks to these all-too-common concerns. Rather than allowing fear to bully us into inaction, Abbie reminds us that as Believers, we are meant to operate from a place of faith, not fear.
In her article, “5 Steps to Serving Other Well,” Abbie teaches how to humble ourselves in service just as Christ did. She encourages us to care with open hands and hearts. She also reminds us to acknowledge our limitations “by recognizing you might not be the whole solution” and to allow others to serve us from time to time.
“To serve others well, we need to have faith that we are ultimately serving someone greater.”
Abbie Thiebaut, Five Steps to Serving Others Well
Obstacle # 10: There is a cost.
Sacrifice is inherent to service.
Our resources. Our money. Our hearts. Our time.
Surrendering to service means opening yourself up to growth. Embodying a servant’s heart means at times you may be asked to step outside of your comfort zone and serve in ways that are not your strengths.
It means canceled plans (tornadoes and hurricanes do not take into account your vacation plans or deadlines at work).
It means disappointments. (People will let you down).
It means heartache. (There will be times when you may feel overwhelmed with how much more there is to do after all you have already done.)
It also means being a part of something bigger than you, fulfilling the highest calling, and learning to love others as God loves us. Unconditionally.
Coming Up
Join us next week for Part 2 of our “It’s YOUR Serve” blog post series, “Ten Reasons Why You Should Teach About Serving Others in Your Homeschool” where we will focus on the importance of cultivating a servant’s heart in your home.
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Blessings,
Kimberly
IOH Mom
This website is not a professional counseling website and nothing here should be construed as professional counseling advice. Although Kimberly Bennett, LPC is a Licensed Professional Counselor, she is not your counselor, and no counselor-client relationship is established unless she has signed an agreement with you. All information provided through this website is for informational and educational purposes only. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure statement. Thanks for visiting!
