All This Work For Nothing?

Welcome back to our conversation with God! Today let's get saturated with what his thoughts that are found in Philippians 2:12-18. It's two short paragraphs but full of encouragement and inspiration! As you read it through a couple of times, take a few moments to ask God, "What are you wanting to say to me today through this Scripture? How do you want this to shape my attitudes and actions? Speak clearly to me, God."

For me personally, this is what God is impressing on me:

Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. . . . Carry the light-giving Message into the night so I'll have good cause to be proud of you on the day that Christ returns. You'll be living proof that I didn't go to all this work for nothing. (v. 15-16 Msg.)

We all want to know that our lives matter. Everyone from the plumber to the president gets a deep satisfaction from seeing that the work they do makes a difference. As a pastor and leader of people, I can relate to the apostle's longing to see the fruit of his efforts in the lives of people he invested himself in. There's nothing like being in the business of helping people grow! Nothing gets me going like seeing someone make strides forward in the right direction, rising to new heights, experiencing more of the full kind of life God wants to give them.

Even if you're not a church leader you are still a minister of Jesus to other people. If you follow Christ, you lead people. And the work of leading and influencing people can be as frustrating at times as it is fulfilling. Sometimes I feel like I'm just spinning my wheels or beating my head up against a brick wall. How about you? There are moments, even days, that all of my planning and effort and attention to detail just seems to fall flat and accomplish little to nothing. Those are hard days! I get discouraged and wonder why I keep trying.

But then someone I'm leading will do something or say something that inspires me! Someone will exemplify the working of God in their lives in some form or fashion, and I know that I was a seed planter or a waterer in that person's heart. Those are the times that I know that my effort is really worthwhile! It's such a great feeling! And it really won't be until the return of Christ that I get to see the full impact of my service. Every person I see in heaven, being rewarded for their faith and the good things they accomplished, that I influenced will fill my heart with an overflowing joy! The frustrations will be oh so worth it. I"ll know it wasn't for nothing, but for something amazing and eternal!

Please share your thoughts with us below!