“No man can serve two masters. He will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” ~ Matthew 6:24

One of the things that I love most about Rebekah is how industrious she is. She’s a doer, a true woman of action. This week God’s been having me take a closer look at this. Her actions were to a specific end – she wasn’t moving for the sake of moving. She was moving to serve someone else. When Rebekah came out with her water jug, going about her day, at first glance she was serving her earthly father. But one of the things that God commands of us, is to honor your parents. So by doing those daily chores for her father, she was also serving her heavenly Father. When she went 500 miles to a land and people she didn’t know, to marry a man she had never met, she was serving her heavenly Father. Rebekah, brave and action-oriented though she was, was at heart a servant. She was strong, but not for herself. She was strong for others, and strong for God. I think I like her more than ever now.

In truth, we are all servants, whether we like it or not. Even if we don’t consciously realize it, every action we take, every thought we have, is serving something. When I pass by the beggar on the street and purposely avoid eye contact, I’m again serving judgement, I’m serving myself and my hectic schedule, maybe even fear…but I’m not serving God. Jesus tells us “Come, you who are blessed by my father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.” (Matthew 25:34-36). His followers had no recollection of doing this, but when they asked Him about it, Jesus answered “Amen I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Mattew 25:40). What if I had bought one beggar a lunch? What if I had prayed with those I passed? I would have served God. Instead I chose to serve my wallet (not parting with money for lunch) and my own self-centeredness.

The same holds true for choices that concern myself and myself alone. When it comes to diet and exercise choices, for instance, do I need to drink that soda, or would I be better off with water? The bible tells us, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the holy spirit within you, whom you have from God?” (1 Cor 6:19). Or when I am already caring for this temple and jogging, am I jogging to lose weight (serving myself) or am I jogging as a form of worship (serving God)?

For someone who loves God, how much am I actually serving Him? Of all the things I serve in a day, does God get the majority of my thought, action, and priority? All week long I felt God in my head saying, “this choice serves someone. Is it Me or you?” “Are you serving Me or yourself?” To be honest, I am shocked at how self-serving I truly am sometimes. I’m not saying never indulge yourself. God scheduled in days of rest and feast days, and He is quick to bless those who follow Him with the things they need. I’m just saying, be mindful of your actions; be conscious of yourself and your priorities, because they can shift from moment to moment. Know in each moment whom you serve.

God put this reflection on my heart to reveal it to me, and I’m thankful He did. I don’t want to serve an empty vessel (myself); I want to serve my Holy Father and be used as His vessel. So I invite you to enter this period of self-reflection with me. Whether we pray about it, journal it, or just think about it, it is time we truly realize that in every second of the day, we are servants. Who is our master?

~Rebekah A