Pathways Press.com

MEDITATION:

Written by Timothy Keller, a contemporary pastor, author, and speaker. This is an excerpt from his book “Jesus the King: Understanding the Life and Death of the Son of God.”

You’re glorifying something when you find it beautiful for what it is in itself. Its beauty compels you to adore it, to have your imagination captured by it. This happened to me with Mozart. I listened to Mozart to get an A in music appreciation in college. I had to get good grades to get a good job, so in other words, I listened to Mozart to make money. But today I am quite willing to spend money just to listen to Mozart, not because it’s useful to me anymore but because it’s beautiful in itself. It’s no longer a means to an end. And when it’s a person you find beautiful in that way, you want to serve them unconditionally. When you say, “I’ll serve, as long as I’m getting benefits from it,” that’s not actually serving people; it’s serving yourself through them. That’s not circling them, orbiting around them; it’s using them, getting them to orbit around you…To glorify others means to unconditionally serve them, not because we’re getting anything out of it, just because of our love and appreciation for who they truly are.

PRAYER:

Written by Robert Benson. a contemporary author.

Deliver us from the service of self alone,

that we may do the work You have given us to do,

in truth and beauty and for the common good,

for the sake of the One who comes among us as One who serves.  Amen.