well, i’m sick today, got a bad fever, sore throat and frankly it’s irritating me …i ain’t got time for it…and i was just about to put this kanye stuff up for the year, i’ve heard enough of him… but the next song on the album, graduation, is “glory”…in it brother kanye gives candid commentary on some of his motivations, beyond the humble veneer…he just says it plainly (regarding some of actions at the grammies and other places), “hey, i did it for the glory…”
now it was reflection time for me. i was about to try to get some thoughts out regarding a particular text for the “saints.” similarly, the text i have in mind relates, you know, to themes of service, glory, greatness and the like, and as i thought about kanye’s ingenuousness, i thought about those of us felt summoned to serve others…whether this calling is to serve more publicly or parochially, one would do well, here, to heed the hard saying of Jesus as it relates to “glory,” or greatness: “he who is [or will be] greatest among you, will be your servant…” (insert mine, of course)…
you see, no where do you see in the Jesus movement one castigated for wanting recognition, it’s innate to all animals, isn’t it (homo sapiens are no different)?…but those who are recognized most famously in service are usually the ones willing to forgo, as the primary motive, the seeking personal adulation, while reveling in the uplift of others. Fannie Lou Hamer, Gandhi, King, Mother Theresa—all are salient examples of “greatness” in this mode of vocation…
but lemme come through the back door on ya…listen to some “West Wisdom,” as my lil’ god sister put it a while back. i enjoyed this elucidation of service and success so much i decided to steal from her the idea of publishing it on my blog…i think the message is significant for all service-oriented folk; and, for the Christian, it is tangentially related to the greatest of the commandments…
so listen to this construal of the love and service message…what are your thoughts on how Dr. West puts it?
