After you! A phrase we don’t hear enough in our society, but yet it carries such a powerful result.

Recently I sat at one of my offices, Starbucks, and watched as a man and three women got out of a car and made their way toward the double glass doors to enter. The man, who was the driver, opened the door and walked through looking to the menu, so excited to get his drink, but forgetting the three ladies he had just left behind the closed door. I sat there and thought, “Who opens the doors for people, who pulls out the chair, who stands to greet someone when they come in, and who says, ‘after you?’”

Matthew 20:28 (NIV): “…the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

All of this has been resonating in my head as I communicated recently about loneliness. One of the reasons it is lonely at the top for people is they walk through all the doors that open instead of finding those around whom they can let go through the door before them. There is nothing more fulfilling than redirected blessing.

When we choose to serve someone else through the favor we have gained it gives us exponentially better results and multiplies our potential for the future, but we have to be willing to say, “after you.”

You won’t be lonely at the top if you continue to open the door for people to go before you. Although it would be easy to continue to keep your eyes open for only yourself and walk through every open door, letting it close for those who are behind you, but you would live lonely at the top.

Jesus opened the doors for his disciples; he could have gone to all the villages and towns and done miracles, but instead he opened the door for them to be sent out. Jesus also called us to do the same, that people would know us for our love, our ability to serve and not be served. It’s a high calling to step aside and be the voice of encouragement that says, “after you” to those around who are with us.

It’s more than good manners that God was looking for in us, it was exponential results. Through his son Jesus, God showed us that the way we impact the world around us is to serve the culture. Be a blessing, love without seeking to be loved and we will enter a realm of favor that will result in a life worth truly living.

See you out there in the community this coming week – just maybe the door will be opened for you and you will hear, “after you” or maybe you will be the one doing the opening. Serve well!