"The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve." Matthew 20:28

Serving in church or reaching out to those in need can be frustrating, especially when we forget who it is we serve. We serve one another but not only and not primarily. We are called to serve God. If our service is devoted solely to people, we will soon be disillusioned and frustrated when we are met with ingratitude and selfishness.

Paul was willing to "become all things to all men" (1 Corinthians 9:22), but he did so as the bondservant of Christ. He said, "Christ's love compels us" (2 Corinthians 5:14). When Paul was rejected, challenged, and even hated by the very people he sought to serve, he remained secure because he knew he was serving God. His satisfaction came from being faithful to God's calling.

Where does your satisfaction in service come from? When you sing in the church choir or give assistance to a sick neighbor, whom are you serving? If you are serving people only, you are setting yourself up to be frustrated. When our service is rendered to Christ in response to what He did and still does to serve and save us, then no one and nothing will dampen our enthusiasm for serving people for His sake.

PRAYER: Father, thank You for giving me the privilege and satisfaction of serving You; 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: Lamentations 3-5    Hebrews 13

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