– Nehemiah 1:11
Why is it that our children will always cheerfully and willingly do work for the neighbors, or other relatives, or for youth events at the church, but when it comes to doing the same labor intensive tasks at home, they run away like the plague is coming! And I'm not only talking about THIS generation either . . . I was the same way! I would go out of my way to do an excellent job for almost anybody else, but at home, the drudgery and the "slave-like conditions" were unbearable! I would expect my parents to go out of their way for me – to provide for me, and to make sure all my needs were met – but when it came time to honor what they did for me, I disrespectfully shirked my duties and then blamed them for wanting me to *GASP* do WORK around the house!
Sometimes we treat God like that don't we? Sometimes, I think we forget that it is we who are serving our God . . . NOT the other way around. Our Father in Heaven has already provided all the freedom and victory we need to be successful in this life, but when it comes to gladly, and cheerfully, and delightfully serving Him, we run the other way because well, it's inconvenient and it cuts into our "plans." I look around and I see men and women – who are called by His name – struggling with recurring negative themes and sin in their lives, and who will take all the prayer and all the help they can get with a smile and an open hand, but when it comes to spending time developing their relationship with God – getting to know His heart, and growing the love-relationship He so desperately desires, they can barely muster 5 minutes a few days a week to mutter their laundry-list of wants and needs.
Now don't get me wrong . . . we ALL need prayer, and from time-to-time, we ALL need help, but if we would just take the time to delight in serving our God; if we would serve Him with eager enthusiasm and excellence – going the extra mile with joy and celebration in the task, with no need for applause or recognition, the success and the victory that has already been established for us would be realized and our need for assistance from others would occur less frequently. We would stand as over-comers, Victorious in the joy of our Lord, delighting in the work of His hands, expressing His Love, and His Mercy, and His Grace to a lost and hurting world.
It's time for the church to be delightful! It's time that we spend more time helping the world to heal, than spinning our wheels on ourselves. I mean each one of us has the answer to be able to recover from our past mistakes. We have the resource readily available to us for a victorious future! We need to stop looking at God like He still owes us something and we need to start being the most delightful servants – honoring our God with our best efforts and our extra energy so that HIS kingdom can be known and glorified to a world who has so far, only seen that Christians are problem-filled needy people, unable to manage their own lives . . . I mean who would want to be a part of that?
So get ready! Roll your sleeves up! Dig in! Devour His Word every day! Get quiet with God on a regular and consistent basis, and then . . . Serve with Joy! Delight in honoring your God! Get involved at church, join a ministry team and be willing to do the most menial of tasks, and do them with a smile. Volunteer to do whatever is needed – even cleaning the bathrooms or picking up the trash – and sing praise songs to God while you do it, honoring Him with your best trash-picking abilities. Work in the nursery, or help by handing out meals, or even – how about this one – sweep your neighbors walk, or pull their weeds, or offer to mow their lawn! Serving God doesn't just happen at church . . . His work is all around us! Show Him that you LOVE Him with ALL that you are and ALL that you do, wherever you are! If you do that, with all sincerity and reverence, HE will make you successful and the desires of your heart (the desires HE has given you and prepared for you), will be realized, to the Glory of our God!
Prayer
Father we delight in honoring You today! We find our Joy in serving You! We are happiest when Your work is accomplished through us! Forgive us for the times when our laziness causes us to neglect our relationship. Help us to continue serving with glad and joyous hearts and place in our hearts the urgency of needing to grow an ever-deepining love-relationship with You.
Have a Blessed day everyone!
– Richard
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