Week 36: Day 2
Today Pete asks us this question: what makes the ultimate leader?
They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the road?” But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.
Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.”
He took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”
Intro: Hello and welcome to Orbit, a short reflection to help you put God at the centre of your life from the team behind Satellites - I'm Pete Baker. Each weekday we share a little bit of the Bible with you, give you a chance to pray and think about it, and provide you with one practical way to put it into practice today.
Bible: Today's reading comes from Mark chapter 9, starting at verse 33:
They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the road?” But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.
Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.”
He took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”
Thoughts: Who do you think of as the ultimate leader? You might think of a sports captain, political leader, superhero, social media influencer, or someone in your life like a teacher, family member or someone in your community.
For me Jesus is the ultimate leader and in this story He brilliantly shows us what leadership can look like; serving others, being humble, like a child, being innocent and welcoming others.
It’s kind of funny in the story that the disciples get caught out arguing about who is the greatest, have you ever got caught out talking about something a bit shallow only to realise that someone you really respect is listening!
I love that this passage ends with Jesus holding a child in His arms, you can just feel the warmth and love in His embrace, maybe you could imagine what it’s like for God to give you a big old bear hug today!
Pray: Lord Jesus we want to follow your example and be servants to the world around us. Help us to embrace you into our lives by embracing humility.
Silence: There's now just a few moments of silence for you to pray, reflect on these ideas, or simply sit and be still.
Action: Every day on Orbit we give you a simple practical challenge to help you put this passage into action in your life. Here's today's:
Simply; to be a servant leader. Don’t argue about whose the greatest, instead choose the Jesus way by serving others. Who can you serve today, how can you serve them, at home or at school or in your community how can you be a servant to all today?
Outro: That's it for today's Orbit. Thanks so much for joining us - we'll be back with another reflection tomorrow.