This week, I’ve been thinking a lot about the source of true joy. Jesus said, if you want to be great, you need to be the servant of all. Apparently, inherent in achieving joy, is dying to self. I remember a wise person once told me that you never know if you have a servant’s heart until someone treats you like a servant. Has anyone ever treated you like a servant? I choose to think of it as a heart check, and if I find any resentment lurking, I find a way to go the second mile. It never fails to turn resentment into peace and pride into joy. Jesus taught us this in the principle of the second mile, Matthew 5:41. In the Roman culture of Jesus’ day, a soldier could force any citizen to carry his armor one mile. Jesus used this as an illustration to teach us how to get over resentment. He knew we’d resent the first mile, but the second mile was our choice. That second mile is where we are liberated from resentment and step into joy. True joy comes not from what we get, but from what we give.
Do you have a situation in your life where you need to go the second mile?
“If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.” Matthew 10:39