SERVING WITH GLADNESS

“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on a stand, and give light to everyone in the house. In the same way let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:15-16, NIV)

This time of the year I look forward to the holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas and enjoying the company of family and having fellowship with believers. But there are also festivities our local church puts on during this time. These tasks entail participation – calling believers to volunteer for service. I realize that I’m a vessel to be used in God’s work for His glory and this can include giving up my time to serve with joy and enthusiasm with those in God’s temple.

My friend, serving is a blessing that sometimes we miss out on, because we say, “I don’t have the time.” In Jesus we find the essence of how to be a giver of self to others, for instance, he healed the sick, gave sermons, prayed to his Heavenly Father and did many wonderful things for people, but he never complained about how little time he had, or the number of people he healed; or the lack of faith that some of his disciples showed. Jesus did not complain, but gladly involved himself in serving others. He set the precedent for us to emulate.

The apostle Paul speaks to the church of Ephesus and to us in Ephesians 2:10 “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” We become Christians through God’s unmerited grace, not as the result of any effort, ability, intelligent choice, or act of service on our part. However, out of gratitude for this free gift, we will seek to help and serve others with kindness, love, and gentleness, and not merely to please ourselves. We are not saved for our own benefit, but we are saved to serve Christ and build up the Church.

I recently came from visiting Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas where I saw enthusiasm of service in believers helping out during their Feast of Tabernacle celebration. It was a blessing to participate in this celebration, but what made it a success were those giving of themselves showing love and generosity to strangers. The world’s view is “what’s in it for me?” But instead we should be saying as Colossians 3:17 says “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” Be a blessing this holiday and serve others with gladness!

God Bless.