Vaiṣṇava-sevā and guru-sevā are non-different

Whenever Guru Mahārāja would preach at various places, many disciples of Śrīla Prabhupāda Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura would also join him in order to give the common persons there an opportunity to attain their topmost welfare. When Guru Mahārāja’s householder disciples would come forward to offer clothes, donations and other items, Guru Mahārāja would say, “I am relatively young and will surely come here again in the future, whereas my godbrothers are senior to me both in age and in the realm of bhakti, and may not visit this place again. Who knows whether or not you will attain the fortune of having their darśana and association again? You should therefore serve them by offering all these gifts to them, and not me. Vaiṣṇava-sevā and guru-sevā are nondifferent.” In remembering these words of Guru Mahārāja, the following teaching repeatedly manifests in our heart:

‘āmi tô’ vaiṣṇava’ e buddhi hôile, amānī nā ha’bô āmi

pratiṣṭhāśā āsi’, hṛdaya dūṣibe, hôibô niraya-gāmī

Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura Kalyāṇa-kalpataru (Uccavāsa 2.8.2)

If I develop the idea that ‘I am a Vaiṣṇava,’ then I will never become humble. My heart will become contaminated with the desire to receive honor from others, and I shall go to hell.

Due to the influence of time and our great misfortune, the conduct Guru Mahārāja followed and demonstrated in his day-to-day personal dealings is seen today only in a very few exceptional devotees. Nowadays, we mostly observe in others the opposite of the conduct and behavior he exemplified.