MONDAY, March 23
Mark 9:30-41

He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.” — Mark 9:35-37

Some of the best leaders, teachers and priests I have ever met are people who serve others, and the worst leaders I’ve ever met are people who want to control others with fear and intimidation. A good leader asks the people, “What gifts has God given you, and what would you like to accomplish with those gifts?” Leading in this way leans into an asset-based community development approach, a philosophy that guides Episcopal Relief & Development’s work.

Today’s Vespers reading contains three stories in which Christ educates the disciples and also us modern believers about how religion, government and all systems of the world should operate. He chose to be incarnate on earth at a time when the hierarchies of society were fixed and when humans had chosen to assign different values to different human beings. Slavery was an integral part of the ancient world, and slaves were considered to be of lowest value. Children had low value in society because they were dependent and not yet productive.

In his ministry, Jesus turns that entire system on its head and reminds his disciples that no one is greater than another. He rejects their question about who among them is the greatest by saying, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.”