"2 While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy.[a] When he saw Jesus, he fell with his face to the ground and begged him, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
13 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!”And immediately the leprosy left him.
14 Then Jesus ordered him, “Don’t tell anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.”
15 Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. 16 But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." Luke 5:12-16 (NIV)
"35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him," Mark 1:35-36 (NIV)
"23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone," Matt 14:23 (NIV)
I have this one friend who is obsessed with giving. I am obsessed with a lot of things, lipstick, ceramic animals, those little games they put on your table at Cracker Barrel, but giving is an obsession to be proud of. She makes her way to homes and hospitals visiting friends or people she just met last week. Her time is of no concern. She is a servant of God, and gladly so.
Do you spend a lot of your day with other people? Is most of your time and emotion invested in the well being of others? If yes, you are a servant too! You have a servant heart and that is no light matter.
Jesus was God, but he was also a servant. He came to serve, not be served (Matt 20:28).
A servant is not independent. In fact, a servant is the complete opposite. A servant is completely dependent on their master. A servant can sweep the floors, clean the kitchen and organize the cabinets, but at the end of the day, that servant is turning to their Master to direct their actions. They cannot simply wear themselves out tirelessly cleaning and serving without consulting their master.
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We cannot tirelessly serve without speaking with our Master. Our Best Friend. If we never make time to speak with our God we may lose sight of why we are serving or why we even put this much time and energy into the lives of others. It is crucial, if we are to fully serve others that we make time to spend with our Maker, the Almighty God.
Jesus healed countless people, listened to infinite stories of pain and sorrow, but Jesus also made time to be by himself, to withdraw himself to spend time in prayer with God.
There is a balance. We must always fill our hearts up with prayer and the Holy Spirit before going out into the world to share that prayer and spirit.
If Jesus needed BFF time, so do you.
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