Jeremiah 45:5 "And seekest thou great things for thyself? seek them not: for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith the LORD: but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest."
Serving for Yourself
I love technology. With just a few clicks on the mouse and a tap of some keys, your work is d-o-n-e. Did I mention that I hate technology? With just a few clicks on the mouse and an accidental tap of some keys, all of your hard work can be g-o-n-e! Do you know the feeling? Now imagine if you had handwritten every word, only to have the king rip up your scroll and throw it in a fire! Baruch, Jeremiah's scribe, was serving the Lord and doing right, yet everything he had done was destroyed and unappreciated.
Baruch was discouraged about the work he had done for the Lord. His God-given service to write the words of God had become his work instead of the Lord's work. He felt sorry for himself and said, "Woe is me now! for the LORD hath added grief to my sorrow. . . ." He was one discouraged servant of God!
The truth we can learn is, if you work for yourself, you are more likely to feel sorry for yourself. It is possible to serve yourself; to serve God; or to serve God for yourself. The danger for you this morning may not be to selfishly live for and serve yourself. The greater danger may be to serve God for yourself.
The way we respond to adversity and down times can indicate our faith, or lack thereof, in God's ability to perform what He has said. It is God's work, after all! Serving the Lord requires stewardship, but even the best steward can fall into the trap of feeling sorry for himself. Be a good steward with what God has entrusted, but don't allow adversity to lead you to feel sorry for yourself.
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