Calendar

SERVE THE LORD WITH GLADNESS
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18
Psalm 100:1-5

1 Corinthians 15:58

 

The good Master looks

for good servants.

 

SERVE THE LORD WITH GLADNESS
 
Delight in divine service is a token of divine acceptance. Those who serve God with a sad countenance are not serving Him really. They make a show of homage but the life is absent. Our God requires no slaves to grace His throne. He is the Lord of love, and would have all His servants appear before Him dressed in garments of joy. His angels serve Him with songs, not with groans.
 
How are you serving Him? That service which is not spontaneous and joyous is disservice. The Lord looks at the heart, and if we serve by compulsion or some other persuasion, and not out of love, He will reject our offering. Service with cheerfulness is heart-service, pleasing to the Lord. He knows those who are sincere and serve with joyful willingness.
 
The Lord has battles to be fought. If a man be driven to the battlefront, he is no patriot. But he who marches into the fray with keen eye and beaming face, singing the battle-song more than proves his patriotism. Cheerfulness doubles one’s strength: “…for the joy of the LORD is your strength” (Neh 8:10). Cheerfulness is the remover of many difficulties. It is oil to the wheel, balm to the weary and worn. In “…every thing by prayer and supplication…” (Phil 4:6), with cheerfulness, our heavy tasks become light.
 
The man who is cheerful in his service of God proves his inner obedience. As he serves, he sings,
 
Make me to walk in Thy commands;
’Tis a delightful heavenly road.
 
Reader, how do you serve the Lord? Is it with sadness or with gladness? Remember, the joy of the Lord is your strength. We serve a good Master.
 
THOUGHT: The time to serve is NOW!
PRAYER: Father, may I serve Thee out of a heart of love and gratitude, not out of compulsion.

Search