Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. Ecclesiastes 11:1
Sometimes people don't appreciate your acts of Christian love. But human approval is not our motivation -- the love of Christ prompts our love for others. Jesus descended from heaven to take upon Himself the sin that separated us from God. He carried it to His cross and left it in the grave when He rose again.
Jesus' grace toward us remains constant. Though we will all disobey His will and fail to appreciate God's generous gifts, He still loves us.
In thankfulness we serve Him with our lives, especially by performing acts of Christian generosity. We do so without a thought of reward and often without receiving a word of thanks.
But today's reading says that the bread of compassion you cast upon the waters of others' lives does indeed return to you. Matthew 25:31-40 describes how the Lord Himself will acknowledge our words of love on the Last Day. He sees what is done in secret, and He knows the thoughts and motivation of our hearts. He appreciates the service we render Him, even if no one else seems to notice. Eternal life awaits those who serve Christ in faith.
PRAYER: There are days when I get tired of doing good. Lift my spirit, gracious Lord, and renew my enthusiasm for honoring Your holy name through deeds of love; for Jesus' sake. Amen.
(Devotions from "The Abundant Life" copyright 1998, CPH. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be printed, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of Concordia Publishing House. Permission is granted for one-time e-mailing of this link to a friend. For information on other devotional material, please contact CPH at 800-325-3040 or visit CPH at www.cph.org.)
Today's Bible Readings: Jeremiah 7-8, 26 Acts 28
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