Good morning to you all, and my apologies for sending this off so late this week. I have been teaching over the last three days, and sick with the flu, so all lof my energy has been spent on the teaching.

I had an interesting evening last Sunday, preaching at the ordination of a friend. I was speaking about service and mentioned the work of American Healthcare reformner and thinker Rachel Remen, who I have mentioned in a previous Leadership Notes,  (check out http://www.alisdairsmith.com under Leadership Notes "Happy New Year") And then teaching this week, a student was talking about "Servant Leadership" and I was reminded once again of the importance of "service." Always one to pay attention to connections like that,  here's what I said in part on Sunday evening at the ordination:
"As Servant Leaders, we are reminded of the important work of Rachel Remen, an American healthcare reformer, thinker and author. Remen notes that for many in our culture, helping, fixing and serving are synonymous. She helps us understand the important distinctions between these three words as she writes, “service rests on the basic premise that the nature of life is sacred, that life is a holy mystery which has an unknown purpose. When we serve, we know that we belong to life and to that purpose. Fundamentally, helping, fixing and service are ways of seeing life. When you help you see life as weak, when you fix, you see life as broken. When you serve, you see life as whole.” 
In our work as leaders there those who need our help. There are things that need to be fixed. Our focus though, is to serve the good in our people. The question is not then how can I help, or what needs fixing, but how best can I serve the good in this person, and in doing and being so, make the relationship, the workplace and our communities healthier places for all of us.
I hope that your week is filled with service.