Just a little something I hope you all will be encouraged with. Written by Zac Poonen.
A mother does not care whether
others around her are sacrificing anything for her child or not. She joyfully
sacrifices everything herself. In the same way, one who has seen the church as
his own baby will not be bothered whether others around him are sacrificing
anything for the church or not. He will sacrifice himself joyfully, and he will
have NO complaint or demand against anyone else. Those who complain
that others are not sacrificing for the sake of the church are not mothers but
hired nurses. Such nurses have fixed working hours and will complain when the
nurse for the next 8-hour shift does not come on time.
But a mother does not work 8-hour shifts each day. She
works a 24-hour shift daily - year after year - and she does not even get paid
for it. Even when her child is 20 years old, the mother's work is not over!!
Only mothers can have milk for their babies every day.
Nurses cannot produce milk for the babies they care for. In the same way, those
who are like mothers in the church will always have a word for their spiritual
children - in every meeting. Many elders have no word for the church because
they are nurses, not mothers.
A mother does not expect any payment from her children.
No child ever pays its mother for her service. In fact, if you were to
calculate the wages a mother should be paid, at the rate of 40.00$ per hour (as
paid to nurses), you will find that every child owes its mother more than 6
million dollars by the time it is 20 years old!! Which child can ever repay
such an amount to its mother?
Now the question that comes to us is: Who is willing to
work like that for the Lord and for His church - without receiving any payment,
but giving oneself, day after day, year after year, until Jesus
comes? If God can find just one person with that spirit anywhere, He
will use him to build the church, much more than He can use 10,000 half-hearted
believers who try to serve Him without the spirit of sacrifice.
When Jesus returns to earth and you stand before Him,
will you have any regrets over the way you lived, or will you will be able to
look back over a life spent usefully for the kingdom of God Many are drifting
along and wasting their lives on earth. What will you choose?
