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"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord." --- 1 Cor. 15:58
The worst enemy of a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ is self-centeredness. Because most of the ministries I am actively engaged in involve some sort of communication, this devotion will examine this verse primarily from that perspective because that is my own personal experience. You can substitute "work of the Lord" for whatever "ministry" you are involved in. Don't think that because you are not standing up in front of people and teaching that this verse does not apply to you. The bottom line is that if you view ANY Christian service from the YOU perspective, you will more than often feel as if your work is in vain.
First let me say that I am not trying to imply that I do not struggle with this. In fact, it is because I struggle with this so much that I am writing this devotion. Believe me, I have to fight this on a daily basis. If I spend x amount of time writing a devotion and the number of people who read it is less than I think should read it, I have a right to get discouraged, don't I? That is understandable, right? According to today's subject verse, this is not acceptable. The reason is the work is the Lord's, and the results of that work are not up to me. I know this is true, everyone I talk to with the same struggles know this is true as well, but it is just tough to put it into practice sometimes. Why is it so hard? Because we all have a tendency to be self-centered.
When I see that only a small number of people have read a devotion that I write, my arrogance kicks in. I reason, "If I put in x amount of time writing this, the least all these people can do is take 10 minutes out of their day and read it." If I think this, I have already lost the battle because my objective should never be results of the Lord's work. The results are completely up to the Lord. After all, it is HIS work...not mine! He just uses me to do it. Now if I were writing for "The Albany Herald" and only 4 people read the column, then I would be in trouble. The reason there is a difference is because my objectives are different. If I'm writing for "The Albany Herald" my goal is to have as many readers as possible in order to keep my job, and then eventually gain enough of a reader base to move up to the "Atlanta Journal Constitution." However, worldly success does not translate into the Christian life.
So how do we avoid falling into this selfishness? We have to always remember to "abound(ing) in the work of the Lord, (and) know(ing) that your toil is not in vain." Some of the best teachers of God's Word teach to a very small congregation every week, yet they continue to be faithful in their teaching. Why is this? It's because they understand and apply this principle. They are "steadfast" in the knowledge that they are not working for "The Albany Herald," but they are doing the Lord's work. As long as they truly are doing the Lord's work, then they know it cannot be in vain, and this drives them to continue. The "success" of Christian service is all about perspective. All we can do is the work that the Lord has given us to do. If we do this and leave the rest of it up to Him, we can be assured that the work was not done in vain.
The worst enemy of a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ is self-centeredness. Because most of the ministries I am actively engaged in involve some sort of communication, this devotion will examine this verse primarily from that perspective because that is my own personal experience. You can substitute "work of the Lord" for whatever "ministry" you are involved in. Don't think that because you are not standing up in front of people and teaching that this verse does not apply to you. The bottom line is that if you view ANY Christian service from the YOU perspective, you will more than often feel as if your work is in vain.
First let me say that I am not trying to imply that I do not struggle with this. In fact, it is because I struggle with this so much that I am writing this devotion. Believe me, I have to fight this on a daily basis. If I spend x amount of time writing a devotion and the number of people who read it is less than I think should read it, I have a right to get discouraged, don't I? That is understandable, right? According to today's subject verse, this is not acceptable. The reason is the work is the Lord's, and the results of that work are not up to me. I know this is true, everyone I talk to with the same struggles know this is true as well, but it is just tough to put it into practice sometimes. Why is it so hard? Because we all have a tendency to be self-centered.
When I see that only a small number of people have read a devotion that I write, my arrogance kicks in. I reason, "If I put in x amount of time writing this, the least all these people can do is take 10 minutes out of their day and read it." If I think this, I have already lost the battle because my objective should never be results of the Lord's work. The results are completely up to the Lord. After all, it is HIS work...not mine! He just uses me to do it. Now if I were writing for "The Albany Herald" and only 4 people read the column, then I would be in trouble. The reason there is a difference is because my objectives are different. If I'm writing for "The Albany Herald" my goal is to have as many readers as possible in order to keep my job, and then eventually gain enough of a reader base to move up to the "Atlanta Journal Constitution." However, worldly success does not translate into the Christian life.
So how do we avoid falling into this selfishness? We have to always remember to "abound(ing) in the work of the Lord, (and) know(ing) that your toil is not in vain." Some of the best teachers of God's Word teach to a very small congregation every week, yet they continue to be faithful in their teaching. Why is this? It's because they understand and apply this principle. They are "steadfast" in the knowledge that they are not working for "The Albany Herald," but they are doing the Lord's work. As long as they truly are doing the Lord's work, then they know it cannot be in vain, and this drives them to continue. The "success" of Christian service is all about perspective. All we can do is the work that the Lord has given us to do. If we do this and leave the rest of it up to Him, we can be assured that the work was not done in vain.
Labels: BH
posted by Bart at 4:50 AM 
2 Comments:
Isiah 55:11 "So will My word be, which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it."
Your verse gave us the principal, this verse gives us the promise. We can always be steadfast when we rest in the fact that His Word will always accomplish and succeed.
All we can do is keep sewing the seed, bro. We may never see the reaping of the harvest, but He always will.
Great devotion this morning. There is great integrity in studying to learn and then teaching what we have been taught. Keep on keeping on.
It was great to be reminded by your devotion this morning that in everything we do, the purpose is greater than ourselves. I was a bit convicted by this though, as just a few days ago I called an old friend and when asking about how his ministry was going I eagerly wanted to know how many people are currently attending his programs. This devotion reminds me it isn't about numbers or who has more but rather that the intent of our hearts is to soley honor God in our doings! Thanks!
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