Scripture: Now the servants and officers who had made a fire of coals stood there, for it was cold, and they warmed themselves (John 18:18 NKJV).

When I was a child, we lived in southwestern Kansas. People heated their houses with coal, brought by trainloads from faraway mines. The black rocks burned for hours without losing heat, and we ate, bathed, dressed, studied. and played in the circle of our potbellied stove’s warmth.

Preparing a coal fire is a miserable job, particularly on frosty mornings. My mother saved every scrap of waste paper and gathered small sticks to lay beneath a mound of coal. The paper flamed through the kindling to the slow-burning coals, dispelling the chill of our old farmhouse. While we shivered and pretended to sleep, she did this early every morning during the long, cold months of winter.

Finally, we moved into town and purchased a natural-gas heater. The fire-building chore was reduced to the turn of a handle and a kitchen match. My dad, who cowered under blankets with the rest of us until the house was warm, gave a long sigh. “I’m so glad we don’t have the work of making a fire anymore. “

Mom was astonished. “Why, Frank, you never got up once!” Sheepishly, he replied, “But I felt so guilty when you did.”

Too often, we are like my dad. We cling to our comfort when others do the work—whether at home, our job, or in church. Only a small percent of the people care for the details. Too often, we sit back and expect to be served, when we too should be serving.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, please awaken us to others’ needs and help us find our own call to Christian service, every day in every way. Amen.