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James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to him and said to him, ‘Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.’ And he said to them, ‘What is it you want me to do for you?’ And they said to him, ‘Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.’ But Jesus said to them, ‘You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?’ They replied, ‘We are able.’ Then Jesus said to them, ‘The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.’ When the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John.So Jesus called them and said to them, ‘You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’ (Mark 10:35-45)
Happy Monday dear Friend! I pray you and yours are well. At this writing, Seguin is cold and rainy! I went outside with the intention of getting a run in, but it was raining; went to the gym and when I exited, it was coming down hard! Please pray for those who have no shelter from the rain, and for those who have to work outside in such weather. Prayers for Kathleen Bowman, who is recovering from hip surgery in Gonzales Hospital. Prayers for each other; prayers for yourselves. I celebrate Children's Sabbath that we had in our church and the wonderful leadership the kids provided for our worship. We had two ten year olds who had been wanting to preach and Pastor Matt and I interviewed them instead. It was a blessing! Thanks to Alison Davis, our Children's Director, who also spoke a word and organized the entire event! We are blessed to have so many children in our church!
Speaking of children, you perhaps lived this or saw it on a tv show. The siblings are arguing and one of them exclaims, "Mom always loved you best!" This was probably made more famous by the Smothers Brothers, Dick and Tommy always argued about who Mom really like best. The same scene is played out by two brothers that loved each other, but wanted a special privilege of power from Jesus. James and John approach Jesus and ask that Jesus grant them whatever it was they were going to ask. Jesus agreed to hear them out, and their request was to sit at His right and left hand sides when Jesus entered into His glory. Fast forward to the other ten disciples finding out and anger arises between them and these two. Jesus' mission was to call all people back to God as God's servants. Jesus asks the two if they were willing to drink the cup He was to drink, and to be baptized with the baptism He was to be baptized with; they both answered yes, perhaps thinking this would get them what they wanted. Jesus answered they would indeed drink from the same cup, which was the suffering that Jesus would endure, and these two were not exempt from the suffering that came their way later. And they were also baptized with the power of the Holy Spirit. Yet, the important lesson these two and the other ten had to learn was about Jesus: He "came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."
Yesterday I had the privilege of teaching our confirmation class. It is a class where the parents are invited to sit in with their kids as they learn what it means to be a Christian within the United Methodist Church, and they are in the process of learning the Apostle's Creed. It fell to me to teach them about Jesus' suffering, death and resurrection. As we talked about death, many of the kids confessed they think about death probably more often than I did at that age. One young man feared not his own death but that of people he loves. I shared how the Creed serves to remind us that we believe the things mentioned about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, and most certainly the promises of Jesus regarding death. Fear should be replaced with faith. Anxiousness should be replaced with peace. This was part of the lesson Jesus was trying to teach the Twelve, and it would be some time before they would finally understand and accept it.
As the week begins for us, take to heart that Jesus does indeed love you best! Like He does me! And all who call Him Lord and Savior. Take to heart also, that your sins were paid for on the cross; we only have to confess them and receive pardon from the Lord. As we live life, know that we are in good company; that of Jesus Himself, who seeks to guide and comfort us if we only ask.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, as we pray, You know our needs. I pray for this dear reader and whatever it is that is weighing heavily on his/her heart. Bless them with calm and peace, and the assurance that we belong to You and you love us best. May this also inspire us to serve others and You Yourself came to serve. This we pray in Christ Jesus' strong name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! What can you do to serve Jesus today?
Eradio Valverde
