Why should I serve?

We can think of lots of great reasons why you should serve! Here are just a few:

1. You need it—whether you know it or not. (See, God gave us compassion for a reason. He created us to serve others. Just take a look at Jesus’s life if you don’t believe us.)

2. Serving takes the focus off yourself. Our culture likes to tell us that life is all about Me: my needs, my wants, my life. Serving helps us adjust our perspective and take the focus off of ourselves.

3. When we serve, God works in our lives. Try it for yourself. You’ll see.

4. Jesus says we should serve. No, really. He’s serious. (See Matthew 25:31-46)

OK, that all sounds good, but I’m not really sure what I believe about God. Why should I serve?

First of all, serving at WordServe is a great way to meet new people. Sign up for a local Compassion project—you’ll see!

Secondly, God works in our lives when we serve (see #3, above). I know you said you weren’t sure what you believe, but hang with me for a second. God might show you something about himself or about the world he created when you serve. We’ve seen it hundreds of times: people serve in missions, thinking that they are helping someone else, and God ends up changing their lives.

I have no skills! What can I do?

No worries! You can still participate in any of WordServe’s serving initiatives. No special skills are necessary to serve. All you need is a willingness to help others; we’ll help you with the rest.

What do I do with my kids?

Unless otherwise indicated, all service initiatives are family-friendly. In fact, we WANT you to bring your kids! What better way to teach them the value of serving someone in need than to serve alongside them? Kids are GREAT helpers and love to learn all kinds of skills; plus, they’re great at building relationships. All we ask is for children 18 and under to be supervised by a parent or guardian. This may mean that Dad doesn’t get to run that fun (read: potentially dangerous) circulating saw, but he will experience the joy of teaching his children about the power of serving others.

I’m so busy. How can I fit serving into my busy schedule?

You may not like the answer to this, but...people make time for things that are important to them. Think about it: we squeeze in every last one of our kids’ sporting events; we cut our lunch hour short to make time for that meeting with the boss; we stay up an hour later just to check Facebook; we even rearrange our schedules so we can watch whatever TV show we happen to love. In reality, any one of us can sacrifice a few hours, if what we’re sacrificing them for is important enough.

On top of that, we really do understand that people are busy. We hope you'll try a local Compassion project, even if you can only come for part of the time. If you can't be there until 10:00, that's fine. Need to cut out a little early? That's fine, too. We're just glad to have you serve with us!

I'd like to serve, but I’ve got a lot of junk going on in my life right now. How can I serve someone else when I can’t get my own life together?

This is a great question, because this is one of the main things that keeps people from serving others. We feel like we don’t have anything to offer, that our own issues and baggage somehow make us less able (or less worthy) to serve.

Here’s the thing: serving others doesn’t have anything to do with us. In serving, we are able to put aside whatever is burdening us and reach out to someone else, even for a moment. God does something powerful in moments like that. He wants to heal brokenness, in our lives and in the lives of others. He designed us to serve one another...and nothing God does is accidental.

Could it be that, in serving others, we are able to give over some of our own “junk” and allow God to work in our lives? It isn’t about “having it all together.” It’s about taking the focus off of ourselves, and then realizing the amazing things God can do when that happens.

What does the Bible say about serving?

Glad you asked! The Bible has quite a bit to say about serving others. Throughout the Old and New Testaments, God clearly instructs his creation (us) to care for one another. There are (literally) hundreds of verses that deal with this topic. For starters, though, you can click on the links below and take a look at the following passages to see what the Bible has to say about serving others:

Leviticus 19:9-10

Deuteronomy 15:11

Isaiah 58:10-11

Proverbs 14:31, 31:8-9

Luke 3:10-11, 12:33, 14:13

Mark 10: 43-45

Matthew 25:31-46

1 Corinthians 10:24

1 John 3:17-18

James 1:27, 2:14-17

The bottom line is that we are created to serve one another. (And there's LOTS more in the Bible about serving!)

How does evangelism fit in?

We believe that Jesus never intended us to separate “evangelism” and “serving” into two categories—like we’re going over here to “get people saved,” and we’re going over there to give food to the hungry or shelter to the homeless. The whole concept of WordServe is based on the idea that these two things can’t be separated. The Biblical writer James even says, “Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?”

Serving others is something we are compelled to do because of God’s love. When we serve, we are demonstrating that love to the people we serve, and our goal is for them to know the transforming power of Jesus in their lives. Whether they come to know that through our words, our actions, or some combination of the two is really up to God.