As I reflected on working in a Teen Challenge Youth Emergency Accommodation Shelter, I began to realize that in serving others, I too had been greatly served. I didn’t work at the shelter to receive blessings or any such thing. My understanding was that I worked there to help others less fortunate than I, in obedience to God’s will for my life. But I did get blessed. Abundantly!
It’s a spiritual dynamic that when we serve others, we are also served. As I served the homeless youth in Brisbane, Australia, God served me through those very same homeless teenagers. The lives and issues I faced were used by God to grow and mature me as a Christian. Without knowing it themselves, different residents were used by God to speak to my heart and teach me his ways. It came through reminders of God’s grace toward me in my adolescent years. I gained insights on how to grow the ministry using scriptural leadership principles. I also saw the power of prayer in action. God used all those things, and more, to give direction and purpose to my life and work. I went to serve others and God served me.
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Charles R. Ringma has worked in urban and cross-cultural mission for many decades. He has taught in universities, seminaries, and colleges in Australia, Southeast Asia, and Canada. He is emeritus professor, Regent College (Vancouver); research professor, Asian Theological Seminary (Metro Manila); and honorary research fellow, Trinity College (Brisbane). He is the author of over thirty books, most recently In the Midst of Much-Doing: Cultivating a Missional Spirituality. He is a Franciscan tertiary, TSSF.
