You Are Free by Rebekah Lyons

Week 10: Chapter 9 — Free to Serve

Read Chapter 9 of You Are Free. Primary passages: Mark 10:42–45; Galatians 5:13.

There is a profound difference between service that flows from freedom and service that flows from obligation, fear, or the need to be needed. Rebekah helps us examine which one we've been doing — and what Spirit-led service actually looks and feels like.

Discussion Questions

7 questions

1.Rebekah draws a sharp distinction between service that comes from a full heart and service that comes from empty obligation. How can you tell the difference in your own motivations when you serve? What feelings accompany each kind?

2.She argues that true service requires first receiving — you cannot give what you do not have. How does this apply to your own seasons of over-giving? Have you ever served from a place of genuine depletion, and what were the effects?

3.Jesus says in Mark 10:45 that He 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.' How does His service — which came from radical freedom and love, not compulsion — serve as the model and motivation for ours?

4.Galatians 5:13 says, 'You were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.' How does Paul hold together freedom and service — and what would it look like for your freedom to become the engine of your service rather than an excuse from it?

5.Rebekah talks about identifying your particular calling and gifts — the specific ways God has wired you to contribute. Do you have a clear sense of how you are uniquely designed to serve? If not, what questions might help you find it?

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Closing Prayer

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Jesus, servant of all, thank You that You did not serve us from obligation or performance but from a love so full it could not be contained. Forgive us for the service we've offered with clenched fists — for giving to be needed, to earn approval, or to outrun guilt. Fill us so completely with Your love that generosity becomes natural, even joyful. Show us clearly how You have wired us and where You are calling us. And may our freedom become someone else's — in Jesus' name, Amen.

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