“Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet,
you also should wash one another’s feet.
I have set you an example that you should do
as I have done for you.”
(John 13:14–15)
When “Why Do I Have to Do This?” Fills My Heart
The One who is King
came as a servant
and washed the feet of fishermen.
He washed the feet of His disciples.
As we live our lives,
there are moments when thoughts like these rise up:
“Why do I have to be the one to do this?”
“Why do I have to give?”
“Why do I have to yield?”
“Why do I have to take the loss?”
“Why do I have to be this patient with that person?”
“Why am I always the one who has to back down?”
“Why do I have to be the one to go first?”
“Why do I have to share my time and my money?”
“Why should I keep doing something
no one even seems to notice?”
Sometimes our hearts are filled
with this kind of protest:
“Why me? Why is it always me?”
When those times come,
there is one sure way
we can find comfort.
It is to “consider Jesus,”
and to quietly meditate
on the Scriptures that tell us what He has done.
I think that is everything.
It may be the only way
to quiet the endless voices of unfairness
that rise up in our hearts.
Finding Rest in the One Who Knows Our Unfairness
Even if we look to Jesus,
and spend time simply staying
inside His story,
and our sense of injustice still will not loosen,
then perhaps we are missing something important.
Perhaps we still do not really know Jesus.
Perhaps our relationship with Him
is not what we think it is.
But I believe that most of God’s people,
when they face unfairness and suffering,
can find rest inside His Word.
Even if they are in pain,
even if they weep and cry out,
they can still find a place of rest in Him.
Why should we continue to do good
even while we are treated unfairly?
For me, today’s Scripture
holds the answer.
It is because “Jesus set us an example.”
For me, that is enough.
I do not need any further explanation.
Jesus, Our Lord and Teacher, Washed Feet
Jesus Christ is the Lord of all,
the owner of everything,
the King of the whole world.
Yet He came to the lowest place.
Without anyone demanding it of Him,
He healed the sick,
poured out every kind of good work and kindness,
washed the feet of His disciples,
and gave His own life.
Jesus did this.
And He said to His beloved disciples,
“Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet,
you also should wash one another’s feet.
I have set you an example
that you should do as I have done for you.”
So today I pray for strength.
I want to become someone
who washes the feet of others,
just as my Lord did.
I want to grow more like Him—
in His humility
and in His goodness.