by Eddie Pipkin

Image by Mark Thomas from Pixabay

In case you missed it, a lawyer arguing before the U.S. Supreme Court last week got a standing ovation.  First of all, that’s not a thing that happens in the hallowed halls of the nation’s most sacred courtroom.  Secondly, the ovation was initiated by the justices themselves, all nine of whom rose and applauded after sharing words of praise for the lawyer in question, Edwin S. Kneedler.  And what exactly had Kneedler done?  His job: with distinction, with professionalism, and for a long, uncomplaining time.  Even in this age of rancor and discord, hard work, done well and without showboating still gets noticed.  As it should.

Kneedler is a career public servant who was presenting his 160th case in front of the world’s most famous court, which Chief Justice John Roberts referenced as a “record for modern times.”  Reporter Jen Gidman quoted Harvard law professor Richard Lazarus in describing the unusual celebration: “It was a rare moment of unanimity and spontaneous joy from all nine justices on the bench.  They were all beaming.”  In an era of hyper-charged politics, it was an inspiring moment of common cause and positivity.  Kneedler, a deputy solicitor general, has a reputation that was not the result of one dramatic chapter but was built on decades of selfless service:

One Supreme Court justice even went on the record to sing Kneedler’s praises. “In all the time I’ve spent in government, I’ve never known a finer public servant,” Justice Elena Kagan says in a statement to the Times. “There’s pretty much no legal question he can’t answer.” Kneedler rejected an interview, noting earlier this month upon receiving an award from his alma mater, the University of Virginia, that he was “a career civil servant” and “not in the press if I can avoid it.”

For those of us working in ministry, we’ve known fine and faithful people like Edwin Kneedler.  They are the folks who keep institutions functioning.  They are the glue that holds organizations together, quietly serving with excellence, putting the mission first, and lifting others up whenever they can.  Such people – although they famously eschew the celebration of their efforts – should be celebrated.  Recognition of their work is not only righteous in acknowledging the faithfulness of the work itself, but it encourages others to follow in the same path.

Quiet, selfless, disciplined service is perhaps out of fashion in an age of social-media-fueled “look at me” bluster, but it has always been a core value of discipleship, and we should not miss an opportunity to name it and note it.  In 2025 it’s one of those “counter values” that exists in contrast to the currently celebrated principles of popular culture.

The tenets of selfless service are timeless:

  • Loyalty to the organization versus self-aggrandizement and self-promotion.
  • Quality work delivered consistently and without complaint.
  • Support and encouragement for the work of others.
  • A quiet and thoughtful demeanor that promotes peace, cooperation, and collaboration.
  • Devotion to the greater cause even when it conflicts with our personal preferences.
  • Humility in all interactions (high moments and low moments).

You can have brilliant, creative types serving – you need those folks, too – but if they are disruptive or dramatic, they can’t provide the kind of foundation that keeps a team going for the long haul.  You can have people who get very passionate about one pet cause – you also need those folks, for the seasons in which that one cause will be the driving force of the organization’s work – but when that passion fades, you are going to be glad that the solid selfless servant has been keeping the nuts and bolts of ministry chugging along earnestly in the background.

So don’t take those selfless servants for granted.  They may be less flashy, less vocal, less “all eyes on me,” but that is their superpower.

If YOU are that person, we salute you.

It may sometime feel like no one is noticing your faithful work, the thought and care you put into your decisions and actions, the quiet way in which you do the right thing with consistency and conscience.  But people do notice.  Keep it up.  People absolutely benefit.

If you have a chance to give a shout-out to the people on your teams who exemplify selfless service, do it.

When you observe selfless service happening, acknowledge it and encourage others to acknowledge it.  There are many ways to do this, some more public than others, and while covering a selfless servant in public laurels can be a special moment for them, often a quiet gesture or expression of gratitude can be the appropriate fuel to feed their reserves.

Build a culture in which you encourage such gestures by staff and volunteers.  Train people to be on the lookout for moments of selfless service and then to express their gratitude for what those moments mean, what impact we observe them having.  By such work are communities strengthened and lives subtly changed for good.

I was thinking about this topic during my daily travels this week as one will do, and it’s not hard to notice this type of generous, community-oriented work when you are attuned to look for it.  Driving along a lovely, but highly trafficked stretch of road near my home, I was reminded that someone periodically picks up the trash on that stretch.  I don’t know who it is.  I’ve never seen them in action.  But if I do ever happen to see them at work, I am going to slow down, roll down the window, and shout out my thanks.  There are hundreds of examples of small things done by big-hearted people that just make life a little better.  They work tirelessly in your neighborhood and your organization, too.

What specific efforts do you make to promote selfless service among the people with whom you are partnered?  Is it a value that you acknowledge in way that make people feel good about their under-the-radar efforts?  How can you make sure that people understand their worth and impact, even when they serve quietly behind the scenes?  Share your ideas and observations in the comments section.