This is from Unstoppable Force, by Erwin McMannus:

“As with each individual, there is a difference between living and existing for the church. The life of the church is the heart of God. The heart of God is to serve a broken world. When Jesus wrapped a towel around his waist, he reminded us that only he could wash away our sin. The church cannot live when the heart of God is not beating within her. God’s heartbeat is to seek and save that which is lost. The church exists to serve as the body of Christ, and it is through this commitment to serve that we are forced to engage our culture.
The serving that we are called to requires direct contact. You cannot wash the feet of a dirty world if you refuse to touch it. There is a sense of mystery to this, but it is in serving that the church finds her strength. When she ceases to serve the world around her, she begins to atrophy.”

I read that last week and I have not been able to get the image out of my head of the church, standing up to its waste in dirt and filth and just looking at each other with disgusted looks on their face, unwilling to be the vessels that clean up the mess.
I love the story in John 4 where Jesus goes up to the Samaritan woman and asks her for a drink. Jesus didn’t sit back and wait for this woman to come to Him, He initiated the conversation. The Pharisees and even His disciples sat back and saw this woman as “dirty” they marveled at the fact that Jesus was speaking with a woman...who was a Samaritan, who was an adulteress. But Jesus saw her need and gave her hope of a life filled with more then the every day monotony of the here and now.
Each day we have a choice...serve God or serve ourselves? Make choices that push us toward American “success” or make choices that push people into the arms of their loving Father. I don’t want to be afraid of touching this world...I want to wash their feet.