Live To Serve

 I'm about the last person, my age, to have become involved with a high tech Apple product. I have owned an iPod for years and have admired the other dazzling products, but it took me awhile to become the proud owner of an Apple ipad mini. I saved my money, I waited for the deals and I braved Black Friday at my grandparents Wal-Mart across state lines for the first time ever and then waited several weeks until it arrived in my own local store. And for the first time, I had the knowledge and reliability of my very own Siri at the touch of a button.
My friend from small groups had often made me laugh with her encounters with Siri, asking her to tell her jokes. I, of course, could not resist playing with Siri myself. One of my favorite Siri moments is when I put her knowledge to the test at 8:39 at night by saying,
            Good morning Siri.
Siri immediately responded with a snappy,
Morning? It's 8:39 p.m.
I laughed and then added,
 You're pretty smart Siri.
Siri only displayed one word in response.
 Flatterer.
Needless to say, Siri can be a lot of fun, but the other day Siri said something that has stayed with me ever since. I didn't know computers could actually teach you something about the human heart, but in this instance I think Siri, or at least the people who programmed her, are spot on.
I had asked Siri something and she had looked it up. I tapped the button and gave her a quick thank you. Usually she says something like, "my pleasure" or "no problem." But this particular time her response was simply, "I live to serve."
I had to stop what I was doing and let her words rattle around in my heart for a second. Unless you’re at Chick-fil-a or some really great customer service oriented place, you don't get that kind of response much. It was refreshing to hear such a positive outlook on life, but it was also a bit of a guilt trip.
Shouldn't that be the heart cry of every Christ follower? When we go out into this big wide world, shouldn't we strive to live in a way that is serving others? No matter what comes our way, whether it be screaming kids next to us, long lines, messed up orders, traffic jams, rude people, different outcomes or things just not going our way, shouldn't we seek to put others first and display a servant’s heart?
Jesus taught us this principle over and over by example in the Bible. Philippians 2:3-8 says, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a SERVANT, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-even death on a cross!"
I think perhaps if Jesus can take on the cross for someone else, then we can try just a little harder in the opportunities we have every day to serve others. I love that my church is so servant oriented, from Acts of Kindness Cards to Serve Day. I think we can all do more to make a difference and add to the value of other people. Let's make that our motto today and tomorrow and actually mean it. Let's live to serve!
-Only Hope