Servant

[This is part two of a multi-part story about my dad and the battle he is undergoing - against Alzheimer's and against pneumonia. It is also a story of how God provides for us in our time of need in oh, SO many ways. I dedicate these blogs to both my mom and my dad . . . and to my amazing sister. And also to anyone out there who has lost, or is loosing, a loved one]

"3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, 4 rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. 5 Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” 7 Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” - John 13:3-7

The morning after our long drive through the darkness to Battle Creek, we loaded my mom and my brother into the car and headed for the hospital.  We weren't sure what we would see when we entered my dad's room but we were prepared for anything . . . or so we thought.

As the door opened, and the light from the hallway streamed into the dimly lit room, there was my dad, lying on his back, asleep. This man only slightly resembled the dad I had seen just a few months earlier when we visited in March. He hadn't eaten for several days, was MAJORLY congested with pneumonia and had all kinds of tubes running in different directions.

After taking in all that was now my dad my eyes turned toward a woman I had never seen before, my sister Mary. Oh, I had seen my sister before, I had just never seen her in "nurse mode." She was amazing. Holding my dad's hand, rubbing his head and arms, talking with the doctor and nurses, suggesting medical things I'd never heard of and then having the doctors agree with her. My sister is an incredible servant!

Do you know someone like that? A servant without doubt? They're the ones who do not ask, they simply do. It's like they can read minds. If someone is sick they are the ones that show up at the door step with a casserole.

In the case of my dad, my sister is probably extra attentive. They have a special relationship. This is a very hard time for all of us but especially for my sister. Yet she keeps right on serving. Amazing.

When Jesus washed Peter's feet he told him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” I am beginning . . . to understand.

My sister has had very little sleep these past days. WAY less than the human body requires. But she is sacrificing herself for someone else. Does that sound familiar? Jesus did the very same thing only on a larger scale. But Jesus, AND my sister, are examples of what it means to be a servant.

Before I close I would like to leave you with two Bible verses. They speak to how God views servanthood and how the last will later be first.

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” - Mark 10:45

“Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but the interests of others as well” - Philippians 1:4

Is there someone in your life who needs a servant to show up in their lives? Have you ever said to yourself, "Somebody ought to do something to help that person." My friends, that "someone" . . . is us.It is time for us to get serving.