HELPFUL - THE SCOUT AS SERVANT

THOUGHTS OF AN EAGLE SCOUT

A Scout is Trustworthy, Loyal, HELPFUL, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean and Reverent.

(Yes, these are out of order.  Sorry)

A Scout is HELPFUL

Through the years the classic image of a Boy Scout is that of a kind young man gently assisting an "old lady" to cross a busy street so as not to meet the grill of a Range Rover moving at high speed.  That image, though still capturing the helpful nature of a Boy Scout is somewhat outdated, now that "old ladies" have scooters, Cadillacs and of course, Segways.

The idea behind being HELPFUL is that a young person, or even an older former Boy Scout has the heart of a servant, willing to take time out of one's ever increasing, and possibly self-centered schedule to aid those in need. "Need can be defined many ways.  As a follower of Jesus it's easy to see him as the essence of what HELPFUL entails. He said "the Son of Man did not come to BE served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for man." (Mark 10:45).  In context this is a theological verse regarding the sacrifice of Jesus.  But he also gave us the image of a servant by washing the feet of his disciples, something few of us today understand in the context of the time.  A possible modern version of this would be Jesus coming to the house of each of his 12 guys and cleaning their toilets.  (Ewwww)  He came to serve, to be helpful rather than require, expect or demand help.  He served his followers as they needed serving, not simply using them to serve his needs. Can't you see Jesus saying "what do you need?" or "How can I help you?" or "Can I cast the demons out of your Segway!"

Reggie McNeal in his book Practicing Greatness (one of my all time favorite books) describes in terms of leadership what it means to be a servant.  He says that "a leader must "BELONG" to his coworkers, or those that he leads.  One reason leaders are supported by great teams centers on the special dynamic between leader and coworker.  The leader belongs to them.  The team knows that the leader sees them as his first line of ministry constituency.  The leader shares his life with them.  Great spiritual leaders still do this." I know I've failed at this, despite my trying.

In the HBO WWII mini-series Band of Brothers,about a company of paratroopers, one member of a squad accidentally shoots himself and dies, something that is devastating to the rest of his squad, a group of at most about 15 soldiers.  The Battalion Commander, a man who is ultimately over approximately 1000 men, makes his way to the handful of men, and sits down among them.  He doesn't say anything. He doesn't attempt to comfort them. He knows them, knows their names.  He knows how much they've been through.  He knows who is affected the most by the loss and who needs the most support.  He just sits with them.  He is one of them, suffering with them and simply being with them.  He serves them by just belonging to them.  And they would gladly fight and die for this servant leader.

Boy Scouts are HELPFUL in far too many ways to list, and as they grow older the dynamic of their servant's heart grows as their lives expand and become more complicated.  But at the core of a Christian, as demonstrated by Jesus, is the heart to serve those around us, no matter how "great" we become.

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