Used of God

In a small eastern community, a man named MacDonald was a one-man taxi service.  People quickly learned that all they had to do was to call him and he would get them to their destination on time.  Despite traffic jams, he knew the back roads, and no matter how late your plane was to arrive, Mr. MacDonald was there waiting for you.  He boasted that he had never had an automobile accident.  McDonald noticed his vision and reflexes were getting bad, so he decided to give up driving.  “I don’t want to be a menace to anyone”, he said.  And then he dropped out of sight.  No one saw him for quite some time.

One day a lady from that community had an appointment.  She couldn’t find a place to park on the street, so she had to park in the community parking ramp.  She didn’t like the thought of the ramp because it was known for “fender benders.” but she had no choice.  When she entered the ramp, she noticed that things were different than they were the last time she was in town – they were orderly.  She soon discovered why.  Mr. MacDonald was there directing each driver into a suitable space. Leaders of the community recognized that MacDonald’s safe driving experience could help them, so they asked him to take care of the parking ramp.  He was happy to do so, and they were happy that he agreed to help.  No one minded waiting in line because they knew they would be well cared for.  Thanks to MacDonald, the lady learned a valuable lesson.  God can always find use for a person’s talents if they are open to new directions.

Some people think that because they are not perfect, they might as well step aside and let others who are more qualified handle tasks.  However, one of the great mysteries of Christianity is that God uses imperfect people to accomplish His will.  Notice the service factor from the following verses.

1)    Example.  Jesus set the example of service.  “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

2)    Age.  There is no age requirement on a person’s usability.  “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).

3)    Use.  God wants us to serve.  “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.” (I Peter 4:10).

4)    Intensity.  Our service should be characterized by total commitment.  “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord
” (Romans 12:11).

What is it that you can do for the Lord?  It may be that God has an activity for you to do of which you had not previously thought.  Where are you when it comes to the service factor?  I trust that you will be open to being used of God – even as you grow older.

The Service Factor

Many people in America are involved in volunteering and about one-third of all volunteers are involved in service with religious organizations.  One of the keys to healthy relationships has to do with service.  Why is service to others important? 

Service is important because it has the potential to make your environment a better and more encouraging place. In addition, kindness to others can improve their confidence and optimism. Also, it can challenge others to use your action of service as a pattern for them to replicate. Listen to how the writer to the Hebrews explains service. “God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the labor of love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them” (Hebrews 6:10). There are four factors in this verse related to biblical service.

1)    Service is difficult.  The verse mentions “work” and “labor.”  Christian service takes time, energy, and lots of effort.

2)    Service should be motivated by love.  This “labor of love” is more than words or feelings—it is action that is based on God’s love for you, your love for God, and your love for others.

3)    Service should have its ultimate focus on God.  As we serve, we need to keep our eyes on God because it represents the “love [we] have shown him.”  To serve means we are not only showing love to those we serve, but to God himself.  Ephesians 6:7 identifies this service when it says, “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you are serving the Lord, not men.”

4)    True service must be ongoing.  Authentic service means there is no letup to our activity, no “breaks in the action”, and no giving up.  This is suggested by the phrase, “continue to help them.”  Service is not a “once and done” deal.  It is something that should be unending.

John Wesley expresses the multi-faceted aspects of service when he said, “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.”

Where are you when it comes to the Service Factor?  Is service a vital part of your lifestyle?  Are you anxious to serve others?  If people would describe you, would they say that your life is characterized by service?  Maybe you and I need to take action to serve others with a willing heart. Such a heart suggests that we serve simply because we want to help others.

What God Requires

If someone were to ask you, “Does God require anything of you?” you would probably answer “no.”  Most likely your answer would be based on the fact that you live in America and as a U.S. citizen you have freedom to do as you like.  However, apart from that you may be surprised to know that the correct answer to this question should be “yes.”  God does require something of us.  Those people who call themselves "Christian" so effortlessly think about all the good things that God does for them. However, they so easily forget that God might require something of them.  Here is what the Scripture says. “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask (require) of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?” (Deuteronomy 10:12-13).

This verse contains five excellent attitudes and actions that God required of the Children of Israel.  These requirements are the same things that God wants from everyone.  Let’s examine these five requirements more carefully.

1)    “To Fear the Lord.”  To fear God is to have a deep respect, reverence, and awe for who He is and for His divine power and authority.  Ecclesiastes 12:13 reminds everyone to, “Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.”

2)    “To Walk in in obedience to God.”  To walk in God’s ways is to live uprightly by being obedient to what pleases God and by living the way He wants us to live.  Jeremiah made the decision for the people and himself when he said, “We will obey the Lord our God to whom we are sending you, so that it will go well with us for we will obey the Lord our God” (Jeremiah 42:6).

3)    “To Love God.”  To love God is to do all one can to desire Him above everything else and to intimately know Him by making Him the highest priority in life. Mark 12:30 makes loving God clear when it says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength."

4)    “To Serve the Lord.”  To serve God is to demonstrate by our actions that we acknowledge Him wholeheartedly and allow everything we do – how we live, what we think, and what we say – to be an act of service to God.  In Luke 4:8 Jesus reminded Satan of the focus of service when he said, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your god and serve him only."

5)    “Observe the Lord’s commands.”  To keep God’s commands is to not only understand what those commands are, but to completely obey everything that God has decreed.  It was God who told Moses, “Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him” (Deuteronomy 8:6).

So, how are you doing with what God requires of you?  As you look at these five requirements which one is easiest for you to carry out?  Which one is hardest for you to do?  I challenge you to ask yourself the following questions about each requirement. (1)   Do I constantly fear God?  (2) Is the way I am living pleasing to God?  (3)  Is it my deepest desire to intimately know God? (4)  How am I demonstrating my service to God?  (5) Do I delight to obey what God says?

 

Remembering

Besides Mother’s Day there are two other very special days on the May calendar – Armed Forces Day and Memorial Day.  Both of these days are directed toward honoring the people who are connected with military services.  Armed Forces Day takes place on the third Saturday of the month and is a day to salute everyone in all branches of our nation’s military.  These men and women can be called upon at a moment’s notice to perform a risky and perilous mission for our country.   President Harry Truman announced the observance of this day in a presidential proclamation in 1950.

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, was designed as a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation’s military service.  Although observance of this day started much earlier, in 1971 Congress officially designated the last Monday in May to celebrate this day.  As we remember men and women who have given their lives, we are reminded of the famous war poem “In Flanders Fields” which was written by Major John McCrae, a surgeon in the Canadian Army.  In the absence of the chaplain, McCrae performed the funeral ceremony for a soldier who had been killed.  The next day, while looking across the nearby cemetery he penned the poem, which only took him about 5 minutes to place the words on paper.  Dissatisfied with his scribbling, he threw it away only to have a fellow officer retrieve the paper and send it to newspapers in England where it was published.  The poem reads:

       In Flanders Fields the poppies grow – Between the crosses row on row,

       That mark our place; and in the sky – The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.  We are the Dead. Short days ago –

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.  If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow – In Flanders fields.

We are encouraged to take time during May to show honor and respect to those who are serving our country and for those who have given their lives for our freedom.  The scriptures remind us to, “Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king” (I Peter 2:17).  We are also encouraged to “Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor” (Romans 13:7).  We are also told, “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves” (Romans 12:10).

As you reflect on the great sacrifices made by our military men and women, offer a prayer of thanks to God.  If someone in your family, or a friend, has given their life in the service of our country, talk to another member of your family and together thank God for them.  At a family gathering you may want to observe a few minutes of silence and then offer a prayer of thanksgiving.  Above all, let’s show honor and respect to those who served our country and are still serving in harm’s way.

Retirement and Beyond

Although a person can retire from a work-position at any age, the Bible doesn’t encourage those who are Christians to stop serving God when they retire or reach a certain age.  The Bible tells us that Joshua was well advanced in years and yet the Lord said to him, “You are very old, and there are still very large areas of land to be taken over” (Joshua 13:1).  There was still work for him to do even though he was probably between the ages of 85-100.  Having a rocking-chair mentality and sitting outside his tent was not the attitude to have nor the place to spend his time.  There was work to do and he was to continue to serve. The instruction in the New Testament that Peter gives is that, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms” (I Peter 4:10).  Did you notice that there is no mention of age?  In other words there is no time at which God-given gifts should cease to be utilized.  Service should be rendered to God at every age.

Throughout life we should be learning, growing and maturing and be ready to share the truths of God’s Word with kids, grandkids, and others, whether early in life, or later.  In elderly years our prayer should be similar to that of the psalmist who said, “Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your might to all who are to come” (Psalm 71:18).

A few questions might be appropriate.  You have been learning, growing and maturing – so, are you ready to share your wisdom with others?  Are you sharing the lessons you have leaned with individuals from the younger generation?  If you are retired, what have you learned about God’s power that you can continue to share with your children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren?

An Opportunity for Service

What comes to your mind when you drive by a nursing home or an assisted living facility in the community in which you live?  Maybe nothing comes to your mind.  Or maybe you think “Those poor people.  I sure hope my kids never put me in a place like that.”  I would suggest that these homes are filled with opportunities – opportunities for you and me to serve others.  You might argue, “But, I can’t do anything.  I wouldn’t know what to do.”  Think about this:

• Can you read?  That’s wonderful.  Come and read to me.  I can’t see well enough to read any more.
• Can you write?  That’s fantastic.  Come and write a note for me.  I can’t hold a pen in my hand and I would like to share my greetings with someone I love.
• Can you walk?  Beautiful.  Come and push my wheelchair to different rooms where I live or outside if it is warm.
• Can you hear?  Wow.  Come and listen to some stories I have to share.
• Can you sing?  Wonderful.  Come and sing to me and I’ll follow along as best I can.
• Can you play dominoes or checkers.  That is great.  Come and play with me because many do not take the time.
• Can you talk?  Good deal.  Come and tell me about your family and your work.

Remember, the senior adults who live in these communities are people.  They have contributed to society and have made a difference in this world.  Where they live is “home” and you are invited to come.  Come and do what you can.  Some day you may live in one of these communities and you will certainly want someone to come to spend some time with you.  As you come remember these words from the Bible, “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers” (Galatians 6:10).

Time for Rest

In the whirlwind of our fast-paced society it is sometimes difficult to stop or even slow down.  However, amid our hectic activity of work and service (no matter how good the service we provide) we need to program rest into our schedules.  Amid a very busy schedule for both Jesus and his disciples He said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest” (Mark 6:31).  There was a reason for his request; He needed rest, and they needed it.  You need rest too!  Notice several things about His comments:

(1) The invitation – “come.”
(2) The source – “with me.”
(3) The exclusivity – “by yourselves.”
(4) The destination – “to a quiet place.”
(5) The purpose – “and get some rest.”

Periodically we need to STOP.  Stop our activities – even good activities.  Stop our worrying – even thinking about concerns that may be good.  You can’t keep on working and serving without rest.  Here are some suggestions for you:

(1) Learn how to say “no.”
(2) On your day off – make sure you take time off.
(3) Go on a vacation – take all the time that you are allotted.
(4) Encourage your spouse or a friend to “come apart…and get some rest.”
(5) Ask God to help you rest as you should.

When you rest, you will be more effective in the work that you do and the service you render.  Just do it!