Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster
Week 9: Chapter 8 — Service
Read Chapter 8 of Celebration of Discipline. Key Scripture: Mark 10:45; Matthew 25:31–46; Galatians 5:13.
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Service is the discipline of acting on behalf of others — not because it makes us feel good or earns us approval, but as a chosen way of life that reshapes our character from the inside out. This week, consider the difference between self-righteous service and true service.
Discussion Questions
7 questions1.Foster makes a sharp and memorable distinction between 'self-righteous service' and 'true service.' What are the marks of each? Which do you recognize more often in your own acts of service to others?
2.He observes that self-righteous service 'requires external rewards' — it needs to be noticed, thanked, or appreciated. Have you ever caught yourself feeling resentment or disappointment when a service you performed went unrecognized? What does that feeling reveal?
3.Foster describes small, hidden acts of service — covering for a coworker, anonymously meeting a need, doing a thankless task without being asked — as particularly formative. Can you think of a hidden act of service you could perform this week, one that only God would know about?
a.What makes hidden service difficult? What does our discomfort with hiddenness reveal?
b.What would change in your interior life if you practiced hidden service regularly for a month?
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