Today’s Reading: Galatians 5:16-26; John 15:5
 
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23
 
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5
 
Devotional Thought:
 
The story is told of a soldier who lay dying and the preacher who came to attend him.
 “Can I help you in any way?” the young preacher asked.
“I’m cold,” snapped the dying man. In silence the minister took off his overcoat and spread it over him.
   The dying man glared at him for a while. “My neck is hurting,” he snarled in pain, and off came the minister’s suit coat as a pillow.
   A few more moments of glaring and then the voice came in a softer tone: “I’d sure like a cigarette.”  The preacher found a cigarette, lit it, and put it in the soldier’s mouth.
  Finally the soldier said to the compassionate preacher, “Mister, if you’ve got anything in that Bible that makes you act like this, read it to me.”
 
Like the preacher, do your actions and words make people want to know about Jesus?
Realize that the Jesus in you may be the only Jesus someone ever meets.
 
Stay close to Jesus, abide in Him; then the “fruit of the Spirit” will be the hallmark of your life fleshed out as you with compassion serve others.
 
In His Majesty’s Service
Donnis Pallaoro 

Just a few thoughts . . .

Biblical Requirements of servants

Reverence: Ps. 2:11, “Serve the Lord with reverence.”

Loyalty: Matt. 6:24, “No one can serve two masters; either he will hate the one and love the other, or his will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.”

Regeneration: Rom. 7:6, “…having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.”

Diligence: Rom. 12:11, “not lagging being in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord.”

Paul’s example: Acts 20:19, “serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials which came upon me…”

Love: Gal. 5:13, “…through love serve one another.”

Selflessness: Phil. 1:21, “For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

In England it is written on the tomb of an unrepentant sinner, “Here lies a man who in all his life never worked one hour for God.” How is that for a final epitaph?  Let it not be said of us!

It is amazing how many servants God has in the world and yet how little service.

I have noticed that the older I get, the harder it is to stay in shape—the extra energy and quick recovery ability of my youth is greatly missed! If you want to stay in shape physically you’ve got to exercise regularly—a hit or miss approach won’t cut it. The same is true of getting and staying in shape spiritually. As you serve God by serving others you develop spiritual muscles. Spiritual growth produces serving and serving produces spiritual growth. God does not want you to stay where you are in your spiritual development. God wants you to grow spiritually and to demonstrate that spiritual growth through serving.

Serving involves placing the needs of others before your own. To be other-centered is to follow the example of Jesus and to give evidence of spiritual growth. Serving is a process of allowing the life of Christ to be realized through your life to others. One of my favorite tests of spiritual fitness is found in Philippians 2:3-4

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” Phil 2:3-4 (NIV)

If I find myself looking down on others, or putting them down with my words or thoughts, then I know I need to “hit the prayer gym” and ask my Trainer (The Holy Spirit) to give me a serving exercise to get my heart back in shape. Selfishness is an indication of spiritual immaturity. Selflessness is an indication of spiritual maturity. What will you model today, selfishness or selflessness? Will you diligently serve others today or persistently seek to be served by others?

Spend a few moments right now expressing your availability to God for His use. Allow Him to have His way in your life today. Even when you don’t feel like serving others, faith it until you feel it. If you keep following this approach, in no time you will see your spiritual “flabbiness” begin to disappear and your spiritual strength and energy increase!

Give ‘em Heaven,

Coach Mike 

John 13: 8  “Jesus said, “Unless  I wash you, you won’t belong to
Me….since I your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to
wash one another’s feet.”

One of my  favorite pictures of the Lord’s servant heart is when he
washes the feet of Peter. Here is a man, with all of his fleshly warts
and insecurities sitting before his dearest friend….having his feet
washed by the One who created him. I can’t possibly imagine what was
going through Peter’s mind. And why did the Lord choose Peter to
record, from all of the disciples? Certainly for our sake as well as
his disciples. What an act of humility. What a foreshadow of his
sacrifice on the cross for you and me. If I had been Peter, I would
have been screaming on the inside, “I am not worthy!” There would be a
lump the size of a baseball inside my throat and a cistern of tears
ready to roll down my face from embarrassment. And yet……..Jesus does
this for me every day. Every time I slide into pride or selfishness,
He lovingly yet firmly corrects me and shows me the higher way of
holiness and offers the choice and grace to change. When I try to
justify my unforgiveness or greed, He guides me in the path of
righteousness until I yeild to  His Spirit and do what is right and
true and pleasing to His heart.  While I worry about whether I am
serving Him enough, He serves …me…with all the grace and promise that
He is. Like Isaiah, “I am undone” How can I not serve my Friend, my
Savior, My King?

Carolyn

Supernatural Service

1 Corinthians Chapters 12-14 (optional reading)
 

Have you ever felt tired, listless, and increasingly lethargic in service? Perhaps you often feel like you’re the only one serving?
 
Well… have I got the cure for you! Yes, step right up and receive a dose of Dr. Jesus’ Miracle Elixir. That’s right folks; you too can enter into the joy of servanthood on steroids!
 
Warning may cause serious side effects, such as: speaking in strange languages, prophesying without warning and uncontrollable bouts of compassion. Available only where propitiation of sins are accepted. Ingredients: contains fruit such as: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Have you ever wondered why God offers us spiritual gifts? In today’s reading you may have noticed the spiritual gifts are not for ones own edification (14:4), they are an act of love (13:1-13) for the edification, exhortation and consolation of others (14:3). In essence, spiritual gifts are for supernatural service to unite the body of Christ for the glory of God.
 
What should we do about it? The scripture says: “Pursue love, yet earnestly desire spiritual gifts….” Our mission, should we choose to accept it, is to “earnestly desire” to serve in the supernatural power of the Master Servant, not from our own strength. If that is your desire, ask God today, He will gladly fulfill your prescription!  
 
Ed Herford

TODAY’S READING: James 2:14-26
 
“What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds….Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.” (James 14, 18)
 
Do you ever wish the world around you could see the genuine commitment of your inner heart to God?
 
Do you wish those around you could see the intent of your heart?
 
I do!
 
But alas!  All that the world really knows of us and our claim to faith is what they see!
 
Does the world see you impatient and critical in the grocery store, hostile or unapproachable during a challenging time on the job or in an office situation, pouting when you don’t get your way, and downright unreasonable or oblivious to others on the highways and the city streets - just to name a few?
 
The lost people around you will never really hear the Good News of Christ when you tell them, unless your life, your actions and your responses clearly show that
knowing Jesus does, indeed, make a difference.
 
Dear “servant of God” will you remember your words are usually superseded by you actions. Now go out into your day and by your words and actions show people Jesus.  
 
In His Majesty’s Service,
Donnis Palloro

Here is a brief devotion from Lead Like Jesus. 

Often times, we serve to gain the respect of others.  This devotion reminds us that we serve an audience of One!If you constantly base your self-worth on your performance or the opinions of others, you’re always going to be chasing an elusive, frustrating fantasy. All the world is a stage and God is the audience of One.  

Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men, knowing that you will receive the reward of an inheritance from the Lord—you serve the Lord Christ. Colossians 3:23-24

Prayer: Lord, I give you my heart, I give You my all, and I live for You alone. Every breath that I take, every moment I’m awake, I live for You alone. In Jesus’ Name, Amen!

Blessings,

Jeremy 

Galatians 5:13 “For you  have been called to freedom. But don’t use
your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead use your freedom
to serve one another in love.”

Phil 3:10 “That I may know Him….being conformed to His death.” This is
true servanthood. “If you really want to understand a man, don’t just
listen to what he says, but watch what he does.” Is my life  a
reflection of the character of Christ? Am I so consumed with my own
needs that my life is a reflection of what I am made of or who my Lord
is? Do my relationships reflect more about my needs and what  I can
gain from others or are they more about reflecting the One who gives
me life, sustains and redeems me?In order to truly serve as Christ
does, I must learn  how to see this world through the cross of Christ.
That the “love of Christ would compel me.” “Christians who demonstrate
compassion because they are passionately in love with God will thus
speak  prophetically to a selfish culture and at times, a selfish
church.” Do I leave the fragrance of Christ where I have been and draw
others into new life? The greatest gift I can give someone is the
reflection I bear of Christ.

Carolyn 

Matthew 6:1-4 (NKJV)
1 “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.
3 But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.

Our theme this month is “On His Majesty’s Secret Service” This verse tells why “secret” service is so important. Please understand that not all serving can or should be secret—but at least sometimes it is the best way to serve. The passage here is primarily speaking of the service of giving to financial needs, but it can be applied to other acts of service.

Why “serve in secret?”

1. It reconfirms the highest motive for service—the glory of God.
2. It reveals our heart’s true condition. I can tell if my heart is right in this area by whether or not I feel hurt if I do something and no one notices. If I do it for the glory of God then I feel the reward of His pleasure. If I serve for any other reason than the glory of God then I want to be noticed and thanked or paid back in some way.
   

My challenge to you today is to do at least one act of service each day that no one but God will know about. And if you really want to grow (and glorify God) do it for someone that you might in some way consider an enemy (or at least not deserving of any kindness from you). There is no greater joy than to “feel God’s pleasure!”

Let’s grow Up together!
Mike 

Matthew 22:2-13

Have you ever heard the following reason for rejecting the gospel?
“A good god wouldn’t condemn people to a bad place like hell.”
 
I believe the opposite is true; God as a testimony of His love for all created hell. That’s right, God loves us so much that He has even given the option of going to a place that has a complete absence of His influence to those who reject Him, those who want nothing to do with Him, those who idolize self declaring no need for Him and those, such as the man in the parable, who reject the only possible way into heaven, which is, being clothed in the garment of Christ’s righteousness through faith.
 
Sorry, there is no room service in hell because there are no servants, only arrogant prideful masters of their own dark isolated dominion of self. No wonder there is weeping and gnashing of teeth, God’s realm is relational, and hell is anti-relational.
 
In contrast, the inner workings of heaven are based on relational service and celebration. After all, we must make preparations for a great wedding feast! All are invited, but sadly, not all accept. Reserve your room today with the Chief Concierge, the Master Servant, who is Jesus. He will personally prepare a place for you. You have His Word on it.
 
““Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:1-6, NIV.

Ed Herford