We have been spending a lot of time in church lately on "centering ourselves" on what really matters, spiritually.  When we put first things first, the rest of our life tends to fall into place.  

Another way to say this is when we are focused on those things the Lord teaches are the most important, when we "seek first the kingdom" - "all these things are added unto us!"  With our priorities straight, we more easily trust in (and draw on life from) God.  

While was meditating on these things this week,  I was delighted to encounter the following from the Rev. Jeremy Simons on the "Miracle of Service!"

May reflecting on these things (and seeking to apply them) lift you up and send you out...in the service of the Lord!

Love and Peace,

Ethan

There is a miracle involved in the idea of being a servant. The miracle is that the more clearly people see that they are only His servants, the more free and the less like servants they feel. As we read in our lesson: "The more nearly people are linked to the Lord, the more distinctly do they appear to themselves to be master of themselves. At the same time the more clearly do they recognize that they are the Lord's. It would seem that the more nearly people are linked to the Lord, the less they would be master of themselves [but this is not the case]" (Swedenborg, Divine Providence 42).

This teaching contains an important key to finding happiness. In many ways learning to be a servant is the key to fitting into society, to finding self-confidence, self-esteem, and freedom. The teaching here is that, contrary to what a person would expect, the more people give up what they want to do and follow the Lord, the more they will feel that they are doing what they want to do, that is, they will feel free. The reason is simply that the life of heaven is freedom itself. 

Even though it may almost inevitably appear as if adhering to the teachings of religion, and giving up our selfish desires, would be a kind of rigid conformity and joyless servitude, the opposite is true. Being the Lord's servant is freedom, whereas "he who commits sin is the slave of sin" (John 14:35).  The same reasoning applies to fitting into a group, and gaining self-confidence and self-esteem. 

It is important to find some way to be of service in any group that you belong to or want to feel as though you belong to. If you are not serving it, you will tend not to feel a part of it, and you may lack self-confidence in dealing with it. A person once belonged to a service organization, and was somewhat diffident about her membership.  Although she occasionally attended meetings, she was not certain that she fit in or even that she agreed with the goals of the organization. Then she was asked to be the group's treasurer, and she reluctantly accepted. Over the course of her term as treasurer she was surprised at how much more strongly she began to identify with the group, and how much more confidently she was able to voice her opinions.

It may seem strange that self-esteem would be enhanced by the willingness to serve. But few things are more damaging to self-esteem than a self-centered life, and being surrounded by self-centered people. If people can avoid centering their life on their [own] desires, and can learn to humbly be of service to others, it follows from these same teachings that they will find security and confidence. It would be even truer if everyone did this, because then a person would be surrounded by loving, caring people from birth, and esteem would not be an issue, because everyone would trust and love each other.

When you sit for a meal at a table, it can be very pleasant to have someone else do the serving. When you are a guest or a visitor, being served and helped can make you feel welcome and at ease. But in the long run the most pleasant thing, and the thing that will make you feel welcome and at ease, is not to be served but to serve.

And so we are to serve one another, each in our own way, using the gifts the Lord has given us. If we are the Lord's servants, then we are truly free. People often spend their lives trying to be somebody, and comparing themselves to others. But the Jesus said: "But not so among you. On the contrary, the one who is greatest among you, let them be as the younger, and the one who governs as the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who sits at the table, or the one who serves? Is it not the one who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves" (Luke 22:26, 27).