The passage below is taken from GMSJ Sunday Worship bulletin dated 13 June 2004.
The Call of the Natural Life
The call of God is not a call to serve Him in any particular way. My contact with the nature of God will shape my understandiing of His call and will help me realize what I truly desire to do for Him. The call of God is an expression of His nature; the service which results in my life is suited to me and is an expression of my nature. The call of the natural life was stated by the apostle Paul - "When it pleased God... to reveal His son in me, that I might preach Him [ that is purely and solemnly express Him ] among the Gentiles..."
Service is the overflow which pours from a life filled with love and devotion. But strictly speaking, there is no call to that. Service is what I bring to the relationship and is the reflection of my identification with the nature of God. Service becomes a natural part of my life. God brings me into the proper relationship with Himself so that I can understand His call, and then I serve Him on my own out of a motivation of absolute love. Service to God is the deliberate love-give of a nature that has heard the call of God. Service is an expression of my nature, and God's call is an expression of His nature. Therefore, when I receive His nature and hear His call, His divine voice resounds throughout His nature and mine and the two become one in service. The Son of God reveals Himself in me, and out of devotion to Him service becomes my everyday way of life.
I am one of those who thought that service is about the few exclusive tasks. I have always thought that I'll need to put in extra effort if I am to say that I am serving Him. If I am to serve Him in church, it could be in the music ministry. If I am to serve Him at home, I must say or do something that is directly leading back to Him. If I am to serve Him at work, I must purposely and consistently remind myself that whatever task that I am doing is for Him.
So now I have my second thoughts about serving.
Service is the overflow which pours from a life filled with love and devotion.
Service is not and does not require extra effort. Service is what we are when we are so close to God.
Don't hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. - Matthew 5:15-16
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