Have we looked in a mirror lately? I mean really looked. Look at the clothes we wear and the messages they send. Look at the cars we drive and what they communicate. Look at the billboards that we display for the world to see. What message do we send to those who are watching what we do? Who do we serve? Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

This coming weekend we celebrate Mother’s Day. I can’t think of a group of people as a whole that are service minded. God equipped most moms in such a way as to be sensitive to the needs of others. Do we have the same servant heart? Christ did.

Another group that comes to mind are those in the Armed Services. Armed Services Day comes to us on the third Saturday in May. I have heard it put this way; “Jesus Christ & The American Soldier; One Died for Your Soul & The Other for Your Freedom.

John 15:13; NIV; Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

Service is an interesting endeavor, James reminds us as he opened his letter; James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ…

Who do we serve and how easy is it for others to know? Uniforms that some wear make that easy; military, police, firefighters, EMT’s, and the like. I wonder about those of us that are undercover servants, like James, are we ready to proclaim we serve God? To do so means we need to act like it, not just say it.

Another way that people see who we serve is by how we respond to situations. Are we viewed as fair and rational or do people see us as hotheads? It makes a difference when people are searching for help. There are some of us who are attractive and others that are avoided. We communicate so many things by what we wear, what we say but mostly by how we act.

A young and successful executive was traveling down a neighborhood street, showing off in his new Jaguar, zooming down the street. He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no children appeared, Instead, a brick smashed into the Jag’s side door! He slammed on the brakes and backed to the spot where the brick had been thrown. Now angry he jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up against a parked car shouting, “What was that all about, who are you? Just what the heck are you doing? That’s a new car and that brick you threw is going to cost me a lot of money to fix. Why did you do it?”

The young boy was apologetic. “Please, mister…please, I’m sorry but I didn’t know what else to do,” He pleaded. “I threw the brick because no one else would stop…” With tears dripping down his face and off his chin, the youth pointed to a spot just around a parked car. “It’s my brother,” he said, “He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can’t lift him up.”

Now sobbing, the boy asked the stunned executive, “Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He’s hurt and he’s too heavy for me.” Moved beyond words, the driver tried to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the handicapped boy back into the wheelchair, then took out a linen handkerchief and dabbed at the fresh scrapes and cuts. A quick look told him everything was going to be okay.

“Thank you and may God bless you,” the grateful child told the stranger.

Too shook up for words, the man simply watched the boy push his wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk toward their home. It was a long, slow walk back to the Jaguar. The damage was very noticeable, but the driver never bothered to repair the dented side door. He kept the dent there to remind him of this message: “Don’t go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at you to get your attention!” God whispers in our souls and speaks to our hearts. Sometimes when we think we don’t have time to listen He has to throw a brick at us.

Have you seen all the bricks flying around lately? I think more times than not we are unaware of our surroundings. We get caught up in our own little world and we forget about what might be happening in someone else’s life. This becomes a difficulty if we claim to serve God and are committed to show His love to others. When we say we are a Christian or we wear a uniform that proclaims His name and act differently it gives people a reason to doubt and be skeptical about this God we claim to serve.

James 1:22-25; NLT;  But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.

Sometimes our uniforms speak for themselves. They communicate a message to others. There is an expectation of how we should behave, what we should say and where we should be seen. Some of us are in plain clothes. What do we communicate? Who would people conclude we serve?

What James is saying is that there should be no confusion. We should be straight shooters. We shouldn’t send conflicting messages to others. We shouldn’t say things our actions will not support. We should be transparent; our motives should be clear for all to see.

What does it mean to wear the right uniform? What does it mean to be ready to serve? Take a look in the mirror. How are we dressed today? I would hope that we are dressed to serve God no matter what the task might be. I would hope that our actions match God’s Word and honor His name.

Think about what others see in us. Think about what they should see. Don’t make the mistake of getting so caught up in our own world that God needs to throw a brick at us to get our attention.

Blessings,

Pastor Don