I Serve at the Pleasure of the Lord

I watched little Katy and her cousin as they energetically tried to remain still in the nave of the church. Katy was to extinguish the candles and her cousin was to carry forth the Bible. They had bounded up the isle a little too early, then shifted from one foot to the other as they waited to carry the precious items from the altar and, symbolically, into the world.

“Grandpa . . . Grandpa,” Katy called in her best stage whisper. She evidently thought they were waiting too long while the last hymn was sung. I placed my hand on her shoulder and pointed to where we were in the hymnal and she happily sang along. She seemed so excited about executing her Sunday morning tasks as correctly as possible, as she served her God.

Then, I thought of the familiar words from the TV show, The West Wing, “I serve at the pleasure of the President.” Evidently, those who work for Republican or Democrat administrations serve in government in that capacity. We, as Christians, serve in the same way, only we serve at the pleasure of the Lord. To truly be servants and followers of the Master, we fulfill his ministry, not our own. We go where he sends us. We speak words he would have us say. We empty ourselves of self and take on Jesus Christ. With great joy and humility, we serve at the pleasure of the Lord. Let us pray:

“Holy Father God, how marvelous is your Holy name. We stand amazed and awed by your glory, the light from which is brighter than the sun. How very silly and childish we are when we think that our efforts alone provide a ministry for others. For good to happen, we must serve you and not ourselves or our own vanity. Forgive us for our self-centered attitudes of entitlement and raise us up as new creatures, full of your spirit, fully human yet touched by the Divine. We turn our lives over to you, oh God, and pray that others will see you in us. We ask for one precious gift from you Father, that we may serve you at your pleasure. We pray that you find joy in your humble servants dear Lord. In the name of your precious son, our Master, our Savior, Jesus Christ we pray. Amen”
Doris
Copyright 2010 Doris Gaines Rapp, Ph.D.
“God gives us stories that testify to His love. Let me tell you mine.”

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