At this time of the year people begin to think about and plan about how to wring as much fun, peace, and fulfillment as possible, from their lives. They begin searching for the latest and greatest life hacks and TED talks.
To that end, let me give you the “Cliff’s Notes” to joy, peace, and fulfillment of life: living to serve others!
Albert Schweitzer, the doctor, philosopher, theologian and philanthropist spent his life serving others.
Take Google for a spin and learn about him and his truly amazing and unique life experiences. About the sum of all his life Dr. Schweitzer wrote: “I don’t know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.”
The late U.S. President Jimmy Carter (who recently died on December 29, 2024), would regularly and consistently take one week off of his busy schedule to work with Habitat for Humanity and build a home for someone (you can learn more about him and his work in the “Additional Resources” section). As busy as he was, he believed in the power of living for others, not for himself.
“Live Your Best Life!”
“Live Your Best Life!” I saw it emblazoned on the T-shirt being rocked by a Buddhist Monk of all people! When I saw it, I laughed out loud—apparently just loud enough to turn the monk’s head my way.
“I know, right? It’s absolute foolishness…the thought that someone could actually find happiness and contentment living their life being totally selfish and self –absorbed! I mean, I wore this shirt in the hopes that I could get people to really think about what they’re saying and living.”
Although I wouldn’t agree with that monk’s perspectives on “Buddhism Evangelism 101” Jesus, Himself said it best when He said: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). And again, Jesus clarifies His life-goal: “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him: (John 3:16, 17, NLT). So from Jesus’ perspective the way for someone to live their best life is to basically seek to give it away! To seek to live their life in the service of others.
The Main Thing!
There are four first-hand accounts of the life of Jesus in the New Testament: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. These are four separate accounts that give four separate perspectives about the life of Jesus. Because of that you would think that they would focus on sharing different life events that they felt were critical to share. To that end I find it really interesting to note that three out of four accounts share the same specific story of Jesus basically giving us His reason for His life. At a critical point in Jesus’ life He takes the time to drop some knowledge to His friends; take a look at what He said:
- “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28, NLT).
- “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45, NLT).
- In John 13:1-17 Jesus basically takes everything that He had been teaching and preaching on and lives it out to very own disciples—His closest friends! He ends with these piercing words: After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, “Do you understand what I was doing? You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because that’s what I am. And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message. Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them (vv. 12-17).
Translation: want to reach your full potential for 2025? Serve!
Improve Your Serve
Now that you know the “How to be happy” life hack, you don’t have to be into tennis to work on how to improve your serve! (see what I did there?)
No…seriously, I want to ask you: how and who will you serve? It doesn’t have to be hard or complicated, but for it to impact yourself and others, it needs to be simple, uncomplicated, consistent, and regular. As a Jesus follower, we are called to serve others and Jesus says that when we do good to others, it’s as though we’re loving on Jesus Himself (Matthew 25:40). Whatever you choose to do doesn’t have to be public. In fact I would tell you that you would absolutely enjoy it even more if you did it in the most quiet and non-public way possible. Matthew 6:3 gives us this wise word of counsel: “But when you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (NLT). So I challenge you to endeavor to find a way to be as invisible as you can be. But I want to challenge you to seek to live your life every day to find some way to serve someone else. I promise you, you will wake up every day excited to see if you can out-serve yourself from the day before.
The Center of the Mark
Someone asked Jesus this question: “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments” (Matthew 22: 36-40, NLT).
I share this most important commandment because I think it’s a great thing to keep foremost in your head. With all that Jesus and His followers have said about serving others, sometimes it’s easy to get overwhelmed with trying to figure out a game plan. Well, to be honest with you, I’m not that smart and I just need to keep it simple, so I would just say that you need to love like Jesus loved, and that means that you just love like crazy! And for all of us that means that we keep people at the center of the mark in our lives.
One of my favorite Christian bands, 4 Him, sings a beautiful song about this called “The Center of The Mark”. I want to share the lyrics with you as well as you can watch them sing it live in the “Additional Resources” section.
“The Center of The Mark”
In this life some things are bound to change, but one thing remains the same: we all need love.
Time goes on, it moves like a hurricane and through all the wind and rain, we all need love.
As this world just keeps on turnin’ round and round, there are treasures to be found if we just let compassion lead the way.
Draw back your bow, let love go, shoot straight for the heart. With all of your might, set your sight. Take aim from the start.
To love God, love people: that’s the center of the mark.
Every day, through what is and is to come, when all has been said and done, we all need love.
So Jesus came, a gift from the heart of God, He gave us His life because we all need love.
And the love that death could not keep in the grave is alive in us today so we must live to show the world the way.
Draw back your bow, let love go, shoot straight for the heart. With all of your might, set your sight. Take aim from the start.
To love God, love people: that’s the center of the mark.
For the world is the target and the arrow is the cross. As we set out on this journey let’s obey the call from the heart of God let us love at any cost.
Draw back your bow, let love go, shoot straight for the heart. With all of your might, set your sight. Take aim from the start.
To love God, love people: that’s the center of the mark.
To love God, love people: that’s the center of the mark.
Additional Resources
- Check out the book, Christian Service by Ellen G. White.
- Improving Your Serve: The Are of Unselfish Living by Chuck Swindoll.
- Jimmy Carter had a long history with Habitat for Humanity — even pitching in on builds in his 90s and Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter left behind enduring nonprofits as part of their legacy of giving back
- 4 Him’s song: The Center of the Mark
