Today we will drive to Portland, the first leg of our trip to Paris. For those of you who are geographically challenged, this means that we will leave our home and drive west for 270 miles, only to get on a plane two days later and fly east 6,184 miles. It reminds me of something I have been learning in my Bible study on the Psalms of Ascent.Psalm 120 through Psalm 134 are the fifteen Psalms that the Jews would sing as they made pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Since Jerusalem is set on a hill, their walk was literally an ascent, ending with a climb up 15 stairs that led to the entrance to the temple. But these Psalms can also be seen figuratively as the Lord Jesus calls us up to higher places throughout our journey with Him. One of the great paradoxes of the Christian faith is that the way up, is down:
...whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave--just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. Matthew 20:26-28
...whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave--just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. Matthew 20:26-28
If I want to know Jesus better, if I want to go to the high places with Him, I better embrace a servant's nature. I am not one to whom the gift of service comes naturally. I do not have eyes that readily see a need nor do I find it easy to act above my own selfish desires. I do believe, with all my heart, that I will experience a greater intimacy with Jesus if I will allow Him to change me to become a servant. I pray that God will increase my awareness of opportunities to roll up my sleeves and lend a helping hand. I pray that I won't miss out on learning what it means to "lose my life" so that I can "find it."
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. Luke 9:24
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