Someone Else Lives Here Now
1 Corinthians 9:19 — For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them.
In the fall of 2013, Laura and I brought Olivia home to our 700-square-foot apartment in Jackson. She was tiny. The changes she brought were not. Sleeping, spending, what we watched on television, when we left the house, how much time Laura and I had alone together — everything needed reconsidering. I knew having a baby would involve responsibility, but I didn’t realize how much it would expose my selfishness. Until Olivia arrived, I had far more freedom to arrange life around what I wanted. But someone I loved needed me at times I would never have selected. I didn’t suddenly stop wanting uninterrupted sleep or an evening on my own terms. But those preferences no longer settled the question of what I should do. Someone else’s good had become my responsibility.
Paul takes that movement even further. Olivia was my daughter, and caring for her was part of being her father. Paul voluntarily became a servant to people who had no comparable claim on him. He wanted them to know Jesus, and he was willing to let that desire rearrange his life. This statement grows out of a sustained argument that began in chapter 8, where Paul challenged believers who exercised their freedom without considering another Christian’s conscience. In chapter 9, he established his right to financial support and explained why he declined it in Corinth. Now he tells us what governs those decisions: he is free, and he uses that freedom to serve. His purpose also protects us from misunderstanding him. Paul isn’t trying to keep everyone pleased or become whatever people demand. His goal is to win people to Christ, which requires both a willingness to accommodate them and an allegiance to Jesus that their approval can’t overrule.
We may sincerely want a relative to know Jesus while resenting every conversation that takes longer than expected. We may pray for a lonely neighbor while carefully protecting ourselves from being interrupted. We want God to work, provided His work fits the space we have left over. But we need to remember that Jesus loves us with a generosity that reaches far beyond convenience. He took the form of a servant, entered our need, and gave His life to bring us to the Father. Because He secured our acceptance, we don’t have to make every interaction serve our importance or comfort. His life in us becomes the source of a different kind of availability.
That is where being a Surrendered Servant becomes personal. I can place my actual plans before Jesus and ask Him to live His love through me within those plans. Sometimes that means changing the plan. Sometimes it means receiving an existing responsibility with fresh dependence on Him. For an exhausted caregiver, it may mean accepting help rather than adding another task. For someone whose evenings rarely involve anyone else’s needs, it may mean opening a little space. Christ knows the difference. Olivia’s arrival exposed how much I expected life to accommodate me. Following Jesus continues to bring that expectation into the light. He is gracious enough to keep teaching me how to love.
Head: My plans can make room for someone else’s good.
Heart: Whose needs have I begun treating mainly as interruptions to my plans?
Hands: Choose one person already within your responsibilities or routine. Give them a specific period of unhurried attention today, asking Jesus to supply the love you need.
Prayer: “Lord Jesus, thank You for giving Yourself to bring me into Your family. Give me wisdom about my responsibilities to others and willingness to receive them from You. Live Your generous life through me in the plans and interruptions of this Monday. Amen.”
-PK