New Year's Serve

Unlocked: Daily Devotions for Teens

READ: LUKE 22:24-27; PHILIPPIANS 2:1-18

“Pastor, could you follow me to make sure I get home okay?”

Mrs. Nelson asked this question. The pastor was my dad. It was New Year’s Eve, and it was very late. In fact, it was technically New Year’s Day.

Our church always had a potluck, games, and a service on New Year’s Eve. This year it started snowing while we were at church, and the roads were bad. Mrs. Nelson was 114 years old. Okay, I don’t know how old she was, but to my kid brain, she was 114 at least. She also lived about ten miles from church. My dad agreed, which was fine, but then he told me to go with him.

“What? It’s like 1:00 in the morning. I’m tired. Can’t I go home with mom?”

I could tell by his response that the decision was made.

“Okay, fine,” I grumbled. I didn’t get into bed until 2:00 AM. Not how I wanted to start my New Year.

But now it’s many years later, and I think about that night often. I think about how nice my dad was, how grumbly and immature I was, but mostly I think about serving people. Serving people sounds nice in theory. As you’re reading this maybe you’re inspired to serve a 114-year-old lady. But the opportunity doesn’t come until you have plans and serving doesn’t fit in the schedule. The grumbly, immature self comes right back.

Philippians 2:5-8 says we should have the same mindset as Jesus Christ, who was in very nature God but “made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant.” He served to the point of death on the cross. He laid down His life for us so we could be forgiven. And then He rose from the dead so we could have new life. That’s amazing. I’m glad Jesus wasn’t grumbly and immature like me. Jesus loves and serves us selflessly. And so, we can look to Him as our model for loving and serving others—even, and especially, when it’s inconvenient and we’d rather be home in a warm bed. • Jeff Weddle

• Jesus is God in flesh, and He came here to serve sinners—including us (Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45; John 13:1-17). How can this truth affect the way we think about serving others?

• What are some ways you can prepare yourself to serve others? Are there any adjustments you can make in your schedule to provide time for spontaneous opportunities to serve?

Rather, he [Jesus] made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. Philippians 2:7 (NIV)