Joy of Serving Sacrificially
Quinnie, Central Asia
The happy kid after shower
I remember once a pastor said, “Give until it hurts; serve God until it hurts.” When I first came to the field to serve, I thought I had sacrificed my stable and high paid salary, my family, and friends. Yes, all of these did hurt but after serving in the field for 3 years, I now realize that doing something I hate is also a kind of sacrificial service.
“Give until it hurts; serve God until it hurts.”
In my home country, having a maid to cook and do all the house chores is very common. I hate cooking and doing house chores so much especially cleaning the toilet bowl. Yet, being hospitable is one of the most important services in the field, I always have to cook and do the clean up after people pay a visit.
The residential area where I stay has no running water and indoor toilet. If people want to have a shower, they must pay for it in a shower house. Last year, some of the youths asked if they could come to my place for a shower. Initially I was hesitant as I would have to clean up after they had used the toilet and bathtub. However, realizing that this could be a way to serve and to show God’s love, I said ‘yes’ to them.
One day, one of the youths came for a shower with a 5-year-old kid whom I welcomed with a smile. From the innocent laughs of the kid, I could tell how much he enjoyed the bath.
After the bath, he looked around my house and said, “Wow, your house is very big,” though, it was not very big. He said so as he would have never been to an apartment. After a brief conversation, he asked shyly if he could come again for a shower. I replied cheekily “O kay, next time, bring me a candy.” He nodded his head with a big grin.
Instead of counting how much I have sacrificed to serve, I now remember the JOY of serving sacrificially. After he left, I sat at my desk with joy thinking about the kid and thanking God for providing me a ‘decent’ place to bless others in a different way.
Did not Christ say, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ (Matthew 25:40)