Daily Devotional for June 18, 2011

Luke 17:10
If your servant comes in from plowing or from taking care of the sheep, would you say, "Welcome! Come on in and have something to eat"? No, you wouldn't say that. You would say, "Fix me something to eat. Get ready to serve me, so I can have my meal. Then later on you can eat and drink." Servants don't deserve special thanks for doing what they are supposed to do. And that's how it should be with you. When you've done all you should, then say, "We are merely servants, and we have simply done our duty."

Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.

Years ago, I worked for a room fragrance company in PR. I often traveled with the company’s executives to high-profile events, where my job was to take photographs and make notes for creating press releases and generating “buzz” later. I had some interesting experiences and met some fairly famous people. But often, I got my photos, did my work, and ate in the kitchen with the rest of the service staff. When we traveled, I had nice hotel rooms… but not the penthouse suites of the owners. I did what was expected of me, completed the work, and I left my job… satisfied I had done all I was supposed to do.

Aside from my paycheck, my “compensation” came in the form of knowing I did my job well… that I served to the best of my ability… and then I let the chips fall. When I mailed press kits and sample products, I never knew if anyone would be interested in what I offered… but I knew I had done my best – and that was enough.

I think one of the hardest things for us to do as Christians is to do what we are supposed to do… then leave the rest to God. This is where faith comes into play. Many of us are born “fixers,” and we can’t seem to stop fidgeting with our work and trying to manipulate the outcomes. But we must learn to stop… and with God’s help, we can. It’s time for us to do three things:

1) Ask God where and how to serve Him
2) Do all we can according to God’s direction
3) Let go and let God handle the rest.

Will this be easy? Not for most of us. Will it be worth it? Absolutely! It’s time for us to learn to prayerfully serve God, say, “The work is done. What we were told to do, we did.”… and leave it at that.

©2011 Debbie Robus