"SERVING THE LORD" –A word from Pat

As I gaze at the cross and what the Lord has done for us, I often think, “Lord, all this you have done for us, what can we now do for you?”To serve means: to be a servant to, to attend, to give the service and respect due to a superior, to comply with the commands or demands of. Let us look at a few ways the Word of God tells us to serve Him:

Serve Him with gladness….”Serve the Lord with gladness”(Psalms 100:2 NKJV). As we surrender our motivations and focus on the Lord rather than circumstances, then it becomes easy to serve Him with gladness, because it is service based on His goodness and mercy and not the circumstances that we find ourselves in.

Serve Him with courage….”God has shown us such mercy that we do not lose courage as we do the work that He has given us. (2 Corn 4:1 JNT)

Serve Him vigorously….”So, my dear brothers, stand firm and unmovable, always doing the Lord’s work as vigorously as you can, knowing that united with the Lord your efforts are not in vain. I Corinthians 15:58 JNT) The first key here is to serve Him as vigorously as you can. You only have to serve the Lord to the best of your ability, not look to and compare yourself to others or allow others to set your pace. The second key here is to remember that you are united with the Lord. Truly our efforts will not be in vain when we are united in those efforts with the Lord.

Serve His interests….Paul in commending Timothy says of the others, “For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.”(Philippians 2: 21 NIV) Let each of us begin to ask the Lord what His interests are and begin to serve His interests and not our own.

Serve Others......”As each of you has received a gift (a particular spiritual talent, a gracious divine endowment), employ it for one another as (befits) good trustees of God’s many-sided grace…..”(1 Peter 4:10 AMP) It is time to lay self-interest down and serve the interest of others.
Serve Him with all your heart and soul….”….Serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.”(Deuteronomy 11:13 NKJV)

Serve Him in the fear of the Lord….”You shall walk after the LORD your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him.”(Deuteronomy 13:4 NKJV) If service is not done in the fear of the Lord, I do not believe it to be true service to Him.
Serve to the finish line….Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work. (John 4:34 (NKJV)

I will leave you with some words from Charles Spurgeon: “Let us show to the people of the world, who think our religion to be slavery; that it is to us a delight and a joy! Let us proclaim that we serve a good Master”!

LIVING QUOTES

“It’s not great talents God blesses so much as great likeness to Jesus. A holy minister is an awful weapon in the hand of God”.            - Robert M. McCheyne

“Our great problem is the problem of trafficking in unlived truth. We try to communicate what we’ve never experienced in our own life”.           -Dwight L. Moody

“I have nothing to seek but the glory of God; nothing to fear but His displeasure”.
                         -Francis Ashbury