Make Me Feel Important

“Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant.” Matthew 20:26

Does this make any sense?

How can anybody who wants to be great apply to be a servant? Quite absurd in the world’s way of thinking! But no one can doubt that Jesus was great except perhaps some perverse people. And Jesus had the heart of a servant. A servant is not a slave by any means because a slave has to serve his master involuntarily most of the time. But a person with a servant heart has a purpose and a gift. And as St. Peter said in 1 Peter 4:10, “God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.” 

In 1985, Mary Kay Ash was named one of “America’s 25 Most Influential Women” and in 1999, the “Most Outstanding Woman in Business in the 20th Century". In 1996, her business, Mary Kay Cosmetics, was highlighted in the Forbes Greatest Business Stories of All Times. 

Mary Kay was an outspoken, God-fearing, hard working, Christian woman who did not plan to be the greatest, but what she wanted was to help women like herself succeed in business. She did everything she could to mentor women to get ahead. Her mother used to tell her, “You can do it, Mary Kay!”, and she imparted that same encouragement and confidence with millions of women. She built her company guided by the Golden Rule, and remained faithful to the right values. She often told others, “Never, absolutely never, compromise your principles.” 

One of the things she taught her saleswomen was, “Pretend that every single person you meet has a sign around his or her neck that says, ‘Make me feel important.’ Not only will you succeed in sales, you will succeed in life.” 

How many times have I concentrated on myself and what I think I am entitled to,  rather than making others feel important and needed? If I value Jesus as my treasure, my heart will be in the right place of serving the people He loves. “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). Lord, forgive me. Teach me to be a servant like you.