Dec 19, 2012
The Determination to Serve
By Rob Appel
Oswald Chambers wrote in My Utmost For His Highest: “Jesus also said, ‘Yet I am among you as the One who serves’ (Luke 22:27). Paul’s idea of service was the same as our Lord’s— ‘ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake’ (2 Corinthians 4:5). We somehow have the idea that a person called to the ministry is called to be different and above other people. But according to Jesus Christ, he is called to be a ‘doormat’ for others— called to be their spiritual leader, but never their superior. Paul’s idea of service was to pour his life out to the last drop for others. And whether he received praise or blame made no difference. As long as there was one human being who did not know Jesus, Paul felt a debt of service to that person until he did come to know Him. But the chief motivation behind Paul’s service was not love for others but love for his Lord.
There are important characteristics in life, and DETERMINATION is one of them! Determination keeps us going when we might want to give up.
Determination helps us endure life’s storms. (I am writing this on the Wednesday after Hurricane Sandy.) Determination helps us battle that enticing temptation we struggle with, or to persevere through life’s terrible trials. We cannot get through this life without having determination! And this is certainly true when it comes to being a believer. Living your life today for our Lord and Savior requires a strong determination.
The movie “Catch Me if You Can” had a short story about determination. In the story, two mice fell into a pail of milk. They swam in an effort to get out of their predicament, but it was to no avail since the sides of the pail were steep and slippery.
One of the mice gave up because it was inevitable that they could not survive their circumstances. However, the other mouse kept swimming—determined by the fact to give up is to die, so keep on swimming. When the little mouse was all but ready to quit, he felt something solid under his legs. He had churned the milk until it became butter. He leapt out of the pail to freedom!
Like the little mouse, we too need a strong determination. We need a strong determination to serve the Lord! Rather than resigning like the other mouse, we need to keep going and be willing to Re-sign to serve with Jesus!
The work in each of your churches is too important to leave undone. There are the souls of men, women and children that are hanging in the balance! Let’s look to the Lord for the determination we need to serve Him and the strength and ability to not give up!
In Galatians 6:9 it says, “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”
And in 2 Corinthians 12:9, “And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
Because “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13
Be Determined to Serve! If you have grown weary, be determined to Re-sign with God and get busy serving Him again!
Oswald Chambers sums it up this way: Paul’s understanding of how Christ had dealt with him is the secret behind his determination to serve others. “I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man…” (1 Timothy 1:13). In other words, no matter how badly others may have treated Paul, they could never have treated him with the same degree of spite and hatred with which he had treated Jesus Christ. Once we realize that Jesus has served us even to the depths of our meagerness, our selfishness, and our sin, nothing we encounter from others will be able to exhaust our determination to serve others for His sake.
Next month: Standing for God… The Hardship of Service!
