As part of my current college course (Spiritual Formation) we have gone through several exercises this week to practice solitude and listening to God’s voice. These are uncomfortable exercise…but that’s supposed to be part of the point as we get out of our comfort zone and learn to hear God speak into our lives. It has been hard. It has been good.

Last night was a 30 minute exercise of silence and listening. After the first 5-10 minutes (I wasn’t watching the clock) God did a LOT of talking. This is probably indicative of how much I haven’t been listening recently..He unloaded on one very specific topic: Having a Servant’s Heart. I won’t go into all of the details, but here are the highlights:

1. Am I leading from a servant’s heart or am I serving out of simple duty and obligation? (I hate it when He asks questions like this because I rarely like the answer!)
2. God wants my motive to service…not service because I’m supposed to or because it feeds my ego. (OUCH)
3. Two examples for me to chew on: Jesus washing His disciples’ feet (He wanted to do it…it wasn’t just a duty) and Philippians 2:4-11.
4. Here’s the big one: He wants me to really start seeing other’s as He sees them—through God’s eyes!

This is all about my motives for ministry and service. Am I doing it for my own benefit or for God’s benefit? Is my heart truly in the right place? I’m not saying I am serving out of some dark place…but it’s not the best place. It’s for God’s glory not mine. It’s not about me…it’s about Him.

God, grant me a servant’s heart!