When I think of the people that have made a life of serving other people, I think of people that had a true desire to put other people and their wishes ahead of their own. They didn’t do it because they had been told that they ought to, or because it is the right thing to do, or because they might feel guilty if they didn’t. They did it because they have a true servant heart like Jesus described in Mark 10:43-45. That is the legacy left by a Christian servant named Nick Green.
I want to share a portion of his story that I was privileged to witness for 20 years. This person would be embarrassed if he were still living, and he knew that I was going to write about him and all the times that I saw him or heard of his desire to serve others for his short life of 55 years. I am not talking about serving others when it was convenient for him and his family, but actually putting the needs of other people ahead of his own, and doing it without any reservation or need of acknowledgement from anyone.
People in the community where Nick lived told me about how he went to an older couple’s house for years and put a man to bed because the man’s wife was not physically able to do it. I also heard about how he adopted a young Hispanic boy named Ronnie, who was taken away from his parents and who became a good friend of his own son. Nick did it because he wanted that young man to have the same chances in life that his own son had. This young man, after he was adopted by Nick, wanted to take Nick’s last name because of the influence Nick had been in his life. I know at his father’s funeral, which Ronnie helped with, it was conveyed to Ronnie of how proud the people were in the town where he grew up, and the good Christian husband and father he had become. He simply responded that “I had a great role model.” Nick was always available to be a servant to any cause in his family, church family, or the community that he lived in.
He became ill with cancer in March of 1997, went through chemotherapy, 3 bone marrow transplants, but he never allowed this illness to keep him from serving others. His house with all his earthly belongings burned up when his family lost their home in December 2007. His father died in the summer of 2008 from cancer, and his mother was killed in a tragic accident in April, 2009. Every time I called to check on him and I asked him how he was doing, he would always respond by saying how blessed he was. During his illness of 14 years, he never wanted to talk about his own struggles. Instead he always swung the conversation toward other people and the challenges they were facing even though they were not as life threatening as his. Every time I had the opportunity to be in his presence, he was always looking for opportunities to edify and encourage those around him though he physically did not feel like it. I visited with him in September of 2010 and he conveyed to me that the one regret he had in his life was that he wished he could have done more for people that were in need.
When he prayed, he asked for healing, but he asked that God’s will would be done and not his. He asked me if I would lead congregational singing at his funeral. He said he would not let me do it unless I led upbeat, encouraging songs of celebration. He said, “That is how it will be for those who hear ‘Well done good and faithful Servant.’” I feel confident that he will have the opportunity to hear those very words.
I am sure that my heavenly father allows opportunities in my life to be a servant. I need to ask myself daily, “Do I allow myself to be an instrument for the kingdom and be a servant, or do I step away from those opportunities?
After having the privilege to be around Nick the last 20 years, I wonder what kind of servant heart that I exemplify for those around me, and for those that look to me for an example.
Father, thank-you for loving us and for putting servants like your son in our lives to be an example. Forgive us when we fail in those opportunities. Forgive us of our pride and instill in us the desire to serve rather than to be served. In Jesus Christ our Savior and the greatest servant of all we pray, Amen.
Rusty Rose
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