Ever have to prove yourself?
As a newlywed, I witnessed my husband, John, work his first engineering job. His job title was product engineer for a connector manufacturer. (Recall Intel inside? He worked with Intel to design components within computers.)
That August he started he was twenty-two years young. Colleagues reporting to him and men working the production line were often more than twice his age. And, many of them weren’t having “some young buck” tell them what to do.
John worked hard to earn their respect by treating them fairly and listening to their ideas as they had knowledge and experience from their years on the job. Although many thought him nice, some remained skeptical of all who worked behind desks, of him.
Until Valentine’s Day. That year the holiday of love fell on a Saturday. His manufacturing team would work that day because a client in Taiwan awaited their product. That production site was a three hour drive from the office.
That “young buck” arrived in jeans, with shirt sleeves rolled up, and doughnuts in hand, with a willingness to work until the job was done. The line men couldn’t believe he’d left home before 5 am to come supervise them.
But they supposed wrong. He didn’t come to supervise them. When the line fired up production, he not only designed alternatives when necessary, he encouraged and thanked the men for giving up their Saturday to meet the client’s demands.
He joked with them, getting to know the men behind the work. Make no mistake, he was in charge of that project. He would answer if anything went awry. But he didn’t lead by barking orders from behind a desk. He didn’t lead by bellowing over machinery. He lead by an example of empathy. His workers weren’t merely men in overalls producing the product. They were people.
At the end of the day, many left feeling valued, appreciated, and a member of a team. They met their international deadline that day, and I bet some met a model of Jesus’ leadership.
Jesus came to serve, not be served. Even though He was a king, the Son of God. He did things like wash people’s feet, a job reserved for only the lowliest of servants.
It didn’t matter that others might perceive a man of his status and his title above that. He did what was required. He looked upon his fellow man and served each where he needed it: a touch to a leper, an acknowledgement of a woman who felt invisible; meeting a man in the middle of the night to assuage his fear of being found in the presence of Jesus’ teaching. The list goes on and on. After interacting with Jesus, many felt valued, even though society might whisper otherwise. Many felt his appreciation, and that they were a member of God’s team or family.
As a King, did Jesus have to touch a leper, acknowledge a woman and meet a man after midnight? He would have held His status regardless. But to reunite people with God, He needed to meet them where they were.
John didn’t need to drive to that site that day. Beyond the manufacturing time, he had to add six hours of driving to his day. Many might have simply phoned in for reports from the office, faxing changes as necessary. (The options in the late 90’s!) But he showed he was willing to meet them where they were. And he wasn’t asking them to do something he wasn’t willing to do himself.
The question for each of us today: how can I serve like Jesus did? Beyond the “job” I am assigned, how can I meet people where they are?
How can I serve others while ignoring status and title? How can I forget the lines humans draw and help wherever needed? Because as my husband proved that day, serving like Jesus can tear down barriers between people and build not only products but also good will that can go anywhere, from a few miles to even around the world.
What is one way I might serve others today?