Why would anyone want to serve in church?

Isn't it interesting that for my daily devotion yesterday, I shared about the quote that stuck with me from the movie, Back to the Future?

Because Pastor Benjamin showed us snippets of the movie, Man of Honour, during Servers' Appreciation Night yesterday. And what struck me was how this guy went against all physical / mental odds even against calamity/persecution/sabotage by his own fellow navy officers to succeed as a Navy Diver of the US Navy.

Especially the part where he stayed underwater for 9 hours to pass the Navy Diver's Test after being sabotaged by his officers, I thought that kinda reminded me of myself while I was doing the training circuit during Adventure Camp, except that he didn't puke his guts out in the end.

During prayer, Pastor also had a vision that God was handing out golden keys to unlock all the grace gifts in us, to enlarge us in our serving.

As I stood there looking at the list of "long service award" servers in church, I couldn't help but feel so humbled. A revelation sorta dawned on me. These people have actually dedicated so much of their lives to serving God and His people. Now you know for sure how to differentiate a true calling and a spur-of-the-moment impulse.

As they flashed the past photos of these "long service award" servers in church, who could've thought these people would turn out to be such amazing vessels used by Jesus to minister to His people? I couldn't even recognise Pastor Daniel. And Pastor Benjamin's photo, he looked nothing like what he is today. He looked, to be honest, super nerdy and quite loser. I would never even have been his friend. HAHA Who would've believed that he would turn out to be a pastor/entrepreneur?

I believe the best in people, that everyone has a sincere heart to serve the Lord. But many simply don't follow through - many lack faithfulness. I'm not talking about serving with a spirit of excellence, that everything you do must have over-and-exceedingly-above outstanding results that will wow your leaders. I'm talking about simply the bare minimum of getting the job done, being there when your leaders need you, and holding on til the end.

Before you jump on me and accuse me of having a "Law & Works Mentality" towards serving, allow me to provide a simple analogy.

When you go to work, your company pays you a salary. Because of that, you get the job done (read: it doesn't mean you put in your best). Why? Because if you don't get the minimum done, you get fired. Period.

Now let's talk about serving. Is there a contract/bond for you to sign before you serve? No. Do you get paid a salary when you serve? No. Can you simply call it quits anytime once you don't feel like serving? Yes. Can your leaders do anything about it? No.

So if you need to sign a contract to serve, and the church pays you a salary for your serving, will your attitude towards serving change?

If it does, then you are exactly under a "Law & Works Mentality".

Today we see some people serving, and giving up after a while due to various unacceptable reasons (which i shan't elaborate). Today we see people serving, but they lack commitment and do not give weight/prority to their serving. Today we see people serving, but their over-zealous enthusiasm fizzles out after a few weeks or so and they jump to the next ministry that they find exciting. Today we see people serving, but they are expecting fast promotions to leadership and honour. [I'm talking to myself here.]

It's no wonder that Pastor has preached before that leaders should never feel embarrassed when they assign stuff for their servers to do. Why should serving have any less priority than your full-time job or school work? Also, Lynn always shares with the Ambassadors/Befrienders that the winner is someone who hangs on til the end to see his/her breakthrough.

What I'm trying to say is this: regardless of your caliber, skills, status etc, when you have the right heart and attitude towards serving, when you avail yourself to be used and you stay faithful to what God has placed in your hands, that is when God will be able to use you for His glory.

As for me, I realised that how far I had to go, after seeing the list of "long service award" servers. I realised what a novice I was, how wet behind the ears I was, and I believe my perspectives on serving were put into place almost instantly. I mean, my company also has long service awards for employees who have worked in the company for 10, 20, 30 and even 40 years (literally their whole lives), but it's nothing like this. I don't really know how else to describe it; it's something that I caught in my spirit.

I'm glad this happened to me, because I believe God wants to show me something with regards to the dreams and the desires that He has placed in my heart for my future.

And I think this is one of the golden keys that many servers have yet to unlock.