Children's Corner: Servanthood

One time, a priest in Virginia named Fr. John Moses, gave a sermon at his church about being a servant. You can watch it here. A servant is a person who helps other people. Fr. John said, “Servanthood is woven into the very fabric of our daily lives.” He talked about all the people who serve us every day: monastics who pray for us, priests who serve church services, and teachers who give us knowledge. And he gave the example of Jesus being a servant to us for his whole life on earth.

 

One example Jesus gave us was when He was in Jerusalem, a few days before His crucifixion and resurrection. He gathered his disciples together to celebrate the Passover. Before they had dinner, Jesus went to each of his disciples with a bowl of water and a towel and washed their feet. His disciples were so surprised! This was a job that a servant would usually do, not someone important! But Jesus humbled himself to do this job, and showed us how important it is to serve others.

 

Have you ever looked closely at your clothing? It is made out of fabric. And fabric is made out of lots of strings or threads woven together. It would be really difficult to choose one thread and pull it out of the fabric! Fr. John reminded us that being a good servant is so important that it is woven into our life, just like threads are woven into fabric. That’s why Jesus spent so much time giving us examples of how to be a good servant to others.

Conversation

Jesus served others by washing his disciples’ feet.

  • It was normal for people to wash their feet before dinner. But we don’t do that now, do we? What are some different things we do before meals? Can you help with those? Ex: Set the table, wash hands, pray

  • Do you think it would be hard to wash someone else’s dirty feet? What would that be like?

  • Although we don’t usually wash people’s feet anymore, there are still lots of ways to be a servant and help other people. Can you think of some ideas?

  • Lots of people serve us everyday. Fr. John talked about monastics, priests, and teachers. Who are some other people that help you? Ex: parents, older siblings, friends, firefighters, mail carriers, doctors

  • When we serve other people it is important to be humble, not prideful. That means that we help other people with love, and we try not to think that we are better than anyone else. Do you think a good servant would be selfish or selfless?

  • Do you think we should thank people who serve us? Fr. John said the best way to thank your priest is by coming to church. What are good ways to thank other people? Ex: Thank teachers by being diligent, thank parents by being obedient,

 

Activity

Think of some ways you can be a servant.

  • What are ways you can serve your family? Ex: Help your siblings pick up their toys, help your parents clean the house

  • What are ways you can serve your church? Ex: Serve in the altar, sing in the choir, take care of candles, help clean, pray for your priest

  • What are ways you can serve strangers? Ex: Make a card for someone in a nursing home or hospital, take cookies to the fire station or post office, put away stray shopping carts at the grocery store

  • Think of some ways to thank the people who serve you. Ex: Going to church, writing thank-you notes to teachers, greeting your mail carrier

  • Choose one way to serve others this week.

  • Choose one way to thank someone who serves you this week.

  • Draw a picture of yourself serving and thanking others, and put it on the wall to remind you to keep being a good servant.

Share This:



< PreviousNext >

Fund for Assistance to the ROCOR
P.O. Box 272
Glen Cove, NY 11542
info@fundforassistance.org
917-817-2925

About
Focus
Our Work
Get Involved
Subscribe

If you would like to join our mailing list, please fill out the following form.

All materials are copyrighted and may only be republished with a reference to www.fundforassistance.org.