The Servant's Heart
What does it take to be a truly altruistic servant? To give without any thought or expectation of return. To put other peoples wants or needs in front of personal desires. To go out of the way to help a stranger. To admit personal wrongs and ask apologies of those who have been wronged. To correct misdeeds.
This knight in shining white armor sounds more like a fairy tale mythical prince of children stories than anything else.
That is probably because what it takes to be a truly altruistic servant requires a virtue that has been deemed a weakness in our culture and has been discarded for many, many years.
Humility.
“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.” C. S. Lewis
or another way of putting it,
“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but more of other’s.”
The distinction from good to truly great leaders is humility. The respect garnered from a humble leader is not a weakness, but a tremendous strength.
Humility is not self-deprecation. It is not timidity or shyness. Humility is being so confident in yourself that you put the needs of others before yourself. For you know your own security.
But to do this you must be secure. And you must be confident in your own love. To give altruistically, you must be given agape love.
Agape. Self-sacrificial love. But who can give such a gift?
Jesus Christ.
Don’t scoff, He is the best and in fact the only example of self-sacrificial love in existence.
“I know men and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genus? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded His empire upon love; and at this hour millions of men would die for Him.” ~Napoleon Bonaparte
Jared Williams
This knight in shining white armor sounds more like a fairy tale mythical prince of children stories than anything else.
That is probably because what it takes to be a truly altruistic servant requires a virtue that has been deemed a weakness in our culture and has been discarded for many, many years.
Humility.
“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.” C. S. Lewis
or another way of putting it,
“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but more of other’s.”
The distinction from good to truly great leaders is humility. The respect garnered from a humble leader is not a weakness, but a tremendous strength.
Humility is not self-deprecation. It is not timidity or shyness. Humility is being so confident in yourself that you put the needs of others before yourself. For you know your own security.
But to do this you must be secure. And you must be confident in your own love. To give altruistically, you must be given agape love.
Agape. Self-sacrificial love. But who can give such a gift?
Jesus Christ.
Don’t scoff, He is the best and in fact the only example of self-sacrificial love in existence.
“I know men and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genus? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded His empire upon love; and at this hour millions of men would die for Him.” ~Napoleon Bonaparte
Jared Williams
