Vatican City, May 29, 2016 / 02:52 am
On Sunday Pope Francis celebrated a special jubilee for deacons, telling them that a good servant is one who forgets themselves, letting go of their own plans and humbly placing their lives at the disposal of those to whom they are called to minister.
One of the first steps in becoming "a good and faithful" servant is that "we are asked to be available. A servant daily learns detachment from doing everything his own way and living his life as he would," the Pope said May 29.
"One who serves cannot hoard his free time; he has to give up the idea of being the master of his day," he said, adding that one who serves "is not a slave to his own agenda," but rather, is "ever ready to deal with the unexpected, ever available to his brothers and sisters and ever open to God's constant surprises."
A true servant must train themselves every day to be generous with their lives and their time, realizing that "the rest of the day will not be his own, but given over to others," he said.