Good Morning
All!!
Colossians 3:23; “Whatever
you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,”
Why are we thankful? Over the
next few days we will celebrate Thanksgiving.
We spend one or two days, eat a phenomenal amount of food and think all
is well. We are thankful for what we
have and envious for what we do not. We
try to keep everything for our own and often refuse to look to those in need. We begrudge the needy and look for excuses to
walk away from those in need. When we do
help, we expect recognition, receipts and compensation. We expect a pat on the back. The truly interesting thing is when this is
our living pattern we rarely are content and rarely are at peace.
Our verse is part of Paul’s explanation to the Colossians about how to
live a Christian life. He starts the
chapter with the premise “If you have been raised by Christ… put your sight on
higher things, the things that are above.”
We no longer live for the approval of others, we no longer love for the acknowledgment
of others, we no longer live even for ourselves. Rather we live for the Lord. Whatever we do, we do for the Lord. Whatever we do, we do as an expression of
thanks to Jesus for what he has done for us.
While doing things for other people may go unnoticed or unappreciated,
everything we do for Jesus is the result of His love showing through us.
We are part of the kingdom of God.
We are part of the healing and restoring of the creation. Every part of it needs healing; every part
needs to be cared for and restored.
Jesus has established us, his church, here on earth to continue the task
that he began; the task of spreading the news that salvation has come in the
person of Jesus and our hope is secure in Him.
When Jesus returned to heaven, he gave the task of preaching the Gospel,
of bringing healing and bringing about the restoration of creation.
Everything
we do should now reflect this truth.
Every action we take, every word we speak should be done in the manner
that brings praise to God. Everything we
do, we are doing for Jesus. When we see
our actions in this fashion, we will see a greater joy and contentment in our
lives and in our response to events.
When you aid a homeless person, you are aiding Jesus. When you clothe the less fortunate, you are
doing it for Jesus. It doesn’t matter if
the person you helped said thank you or even knew you were the one who helped,
Jesus knows. Jesus knows whose actions
are based on love and whose actions are based on greed or guilt, on selfishness
or ego. Serve the Lord with all your
heart and you will have joy.
Father,
often are the times when we lose sight of the truth. We lose sight of your compassion for us. We fail to remember your atoning sacrifice which
gives us life. Restore us Lord; that we
may serve you in all that we do. In your
wonderful name we pray, amen.
God’s Peace,
Pastor Bret
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