Character Development and Servant Leadership

Serve Like Jesus

Not So With You (Mark 10:43)

Children at Christian Alliance P.C. Lau Memorial International School (CAPCL) serve each other and reach out to others in our community. They are fond of Community Time when upper primary children work with lower primary children and help them to complete different missions. Students may also volunteer to serve at their Treehouse Library. They are always prepared to share their love with others, such as hand-knitting scarves as gifts for others, distributing festive gifts at the elderly center, carolling, beach-cleaning, and more…As a Christ-centered, learner-focused, and others-oriented community, we strive to serve like Jesus.

The term servant leadership was first coined by Greenleaf (1970) in his seminal essay, The Servant as Leader. The servant-leader is servant first... It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead... The difference manifests itself in the care taken by the servant-first to make sure that other people's highest priority needs are being served. The best test is: do those served grow as persons; do they, while being served, become healthier, wiser, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become servants? And what is the effect on the least privileged in society; will they benefit, or at least, not be further deprived? (p.13) The desire to be servant-first cannot be imposed but is a personal choice for life. The motive is to help others. A servant-leader is interested in developing others. A servant-leader has emergent power and uses such power to serve. As a result, everyone goes further into realization of his/her potential, reaching closer into finding the significant meaning of life, and living a fulfilled life by serving others. Servant-leadership is exemplified in Jesus Christ, in the fusion of transcendence and humility. Jesus, as presented in the Holy Bible, is the Son of God. However, he is described as the 'holy servant Jesus' (Acts 4:27). He humbled himself and was born in a manger (Luke 2:1-7). He lived an earthly life. He was personable and his actions were fueled by love. He taught his disciples, preached to the masses, healed the sick, and befriended the outcasts of the society. He even washed his disciples' feet after a long day of work. The Son of God made His dwelling among mankind (John 1:14). This implies a blend of transcendence and immanence. It states that "even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Matthew 20:28).

The Parable of the Good Samaritan is a practical outworking of the servant-hood aspect of servant-leadership principles. It illustrates how one should love God and serve others, the greatest commandment in Christianity (Matthew 22:34-40). A servant-leader is one who chooses to be available and extends a helpful hand to those who are marginalized and in need of help. Servant-leadership is not about position, power, or prestige but willingness to look out for the interests of others above self-interest (Philippians 2: 3-4).

Christian Alliance P. C. Lau Memorial International School

2 Fu Ning Street, Kowloon, Hong Kong(Sung Wong Toi Station, Exit B1,follow Ma Tau Chung Road direction)Tel: (852) 2713 3733Fax: (852) 2362 2328Email:info@capcl.edu.hk

Christian Alliance P. C. Lau Memorial International School

2 Fu Ning Street, Kowloon, Hong Kong(Sung Wong Toi Station, Exit B1, follow Ma Tau Chung Road direction)Tel: (852) 2713 3733Fax: (852) 2362 2328Email:info@capcl.edu.hk

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