I noticed the
handicap van they drove and knew it was time for me to serve. I would soon
learn the joy of serving others well.
Saturday
morning. My wife and I were in the middle of packing for our move later in the
month when we ran out of boxes. She suggested I stop by McDonald’s and grab us
lunch after I picked up a few boxes. As I waited in the drive-through line, I
noticed an older couple in a handicapped-accessible van slowly pull through the
parking lot and take their place behind me.
Our daughter once
had the habit of paying for the person behind her when she bought food from
Chick-fil-A. I had never done this before, but on this day felt God’s Spirit
nudging me. I questioned myself. What if
they have ten more people in the van with them? I decided to act rather
than doubt. When I approached the window to pay for my food, I asked the
attendant to add their tab to mine. It was an insignificant amount, but the
feeling I received from obeying God’s prompting was unsurpassed.
As believers, we
have been freed from sin’s penalty. The blood of Christ has washed away our
sins. Rather than using that freedom to indulge in sinful practices, Paul says
we should use it to serve others. By doing so, we obey the second greatest
command: to love our neighbors as ourselves.
Serving others can
bring joy when we do so with the right attitude. Serving with reluctance won’t
work. When we serve reluctantly, we feel hesitation because we’re doing
something we don’t want to do.
Serving with joy
requires letting God change how we see situations. What we give through our act
of service is not forced from our hands. Instead, we’re allowing the act to
slip away as a form of appreciation for what Christ has done for us.
Nor should we
serve with ulterior motives. If we brag about what we’ve done, the spotlight
shines on us instead of God. Jesus said not to let our right hand know what our
left hand was doing. He also warned about standing on a street corner and
announcing what we’ve done for him. Our motive in serving is to give God
praise, not ourselves.
Learn the joy of
serving others well, but not because you feel forced or want recognition.
Father, thank you
for giving me opportunities to serve others in your name.
I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing in eBook or paperback. If you seek hope and healing because of the hurts you have faced, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.
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