Serving leaders proclaim good news; their leadership influences from the negative toward the positive, from smallness to greatness, from weakness to strength, from sorrow to joy. In Mark 1:1–9 the author introduced his Gospel narrative as good news about Jesus the Messiah. John the Baptist, whose noble calling was to prepare the way for Christ, understood how significant Jesus was. “After me,” announced John, “comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.” In an ironic twist, humanity’s Savior—the Son of God—came to the Jordan to be baptized by John. Assuming the posture of an inferior, Jesus bowed himself in the Jordan River to receive baptism from the one who had earlier declared his unworthiness. Good news is proclaimed in the context of humility and servanthood. The Messiah came to serve.

Lead, love, and serve, like Jesus!

KEY QUESTIONS: Who needs my help moving from the negative to the positive, from smallness to greatness, from weakness to strength, or from sorrow to joy? In which contexts could I do a better job of assuming the posture of a servant?