iShineInMinistry

Matthew 6:1 (NET)

Be careful not to display your righteousness merely to be seen by people. Otherwise you have no reward with your Father in heaven.

We are getting right to the heart of things in July, looking for a complete and total reset as we do the work of the ministry at iShine. We are taking a long, hard look at ourselves and making sure our hearts, minds and motives are in the right place. Last week, as we talked through remaining humble, a thought stuck in my mind as I was volunteering for an event. The question that we must all ask ourselves as we serve is, “Who is this for?”

I know that the answer to this question may seem pretty obvious to us; but we need to really ask ourselves the question, then let God answer. Are the things that we do in ministry for us, for people or for Him? Our sole aim should be to glorify the Lord, even if no one else sees or acknowledges our efforts. We should not do things just to make others happy or to get accolades or show off how wonderful we are, but we should do everything we do because we love Jesus and want to bless His heart as we worship Him with every part of our being. We should not do the bare minimum just to get by or say we were involved; we should have that servant’s heart, that desires to do all for the glory of the Lord and also come alongside our brothers and sisters as they serve and be a help to them (not out of obligation, but out of love).

The verse above speaks of the one that does things just to be seen by others. If your heart is in this place right now, I would encourage you to take a little break and get your eyes back on the Lord and heart back under His submission. He is the one that we want to please in the long run, not our pastors, missionaries, friends or ourselves. As we please the Lord, they receive the benefit, but it should not only be about being a pleaser of man or being popular in our social circles. I hope that you and I will always take the time to see where our heart loyalties truly lie as we serve our heavenly Father.