THE PURPOSE DRIVEN SERVANT

     This is my fourth time reading through The Purpose Driven Life. Each time I have read the book, a different theme has struck me. This time I got hung-up reading and rereading day 33 and day 34, “How Real Servants Act,” and “Thinking Like a Servant.” Forgive me for retelling days 33 and 34 to you, but I believe the principles therein are extremely important. Some of the more prominent statements made in the chapters are as follows.
     “Thousands of books have been written on leadership, but few on servanthood. Everyone wants to be a lead; no one wants to be a servant. We would rather be generals than privates. Even Christians want to be “servant-leaders*,” not just plain servants. But to be like Jesus is to be a servant.”
     The six characteristics of servants in chapter 33 Mr. Warren pointed out in his book, are important for all of us to consider in our lives, namely, 1) Real servants make themselves available to serve; 2) Real servants pay attention to needs; 3) Real servants do the best with what they have; 4) Real servants do every task with equal dedication; 5) Real servants are faithful to their ministry and; 6) Real servants maintain a low profile.
     Opening chapter 34 of his book, Mr. Warren brings all these characteristics together when he wrote, “Servants think more about others than about themselves.” That may be the real key in what pure servanthood is all about.
     We are swiftly coming to an end of the 40 days of purpose. If my calculations are right, we should all finish the book on Thursday of this week. The next phase of our “40 Days of Purpose” is to commit ourselves to the principles found as we read through the book.
     Within the next few weeks, you will be hearing plans for reestablishing small groups in our congregation, and for you to commit to one of the many ministries that exist here in Fairfield. This is not the end of discovering our purpose in the kingdom; it is the beginning. Let’s continue to be servants to each other.

     * Servant-Leaders is the new catch phrase to describe church boards, elderships , and ministries.