Have you ever considered that where you are today is God’s training ground for you?
Wherever you may find yourself, with whomever He’s placed in your life to serve, with whatever role or responsibilities He’s placed in your hand is the perfect place to be trained for the good works God has prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10).
Are you serving God faithfully today? This will hopefully encourage you to bloom where God has planted you!
Serving God Faithfully
We’re told in 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Whatever you do, do all things to the glory of God.” I’ll be the first one to raise my hand and say this is much easier said than done! This verse combined with the call to serve God faithfully, may not be so challenging when circumstances are ideal, the people around us are easy to get along with, and we’re placed somewhere pleasant and enjoyable with ever-present sunshine and rainbows.
But what about serving God faithfully when we’re faced with difficult people, frustrating challenges, everyday mundane, or the dirty details that come with life?
What do you do then?
How do you serve God faithfully?
I won’t begin to act like there’s a 5-step action plan to make serving God an easy walk in the park, but I will share God’s word and His incredible faithfulness to us which is the only thing we can cling to and in return daily live out bringing Him glory.
This post hinges on this powerful bible verse about serving God faithfully and what God can do wherever we are placed.
He took David from tending the ewes and lambs and made him the shepherd of Jacob’s descendants – God’s own people, Israel. Psalm 78:71
Wow! This is a pretty spectacular verse, right!?
From the daily toils of tending sheep, the long labors of protecting his flock, and the round-the-clock dedication of constant care, God took David from a shepherd of sheep to the shepherd of God’s chosen people!
From being a shepherd to becoming a shepherd king.
I don’t know about you, but this invigorates me to remain faithful knowing that we serve a most faithful God that completes in us all that He has begun!
Benefits of Serving God Faithfully
When we’re planted in God’s training ground, and seeking to faithfully pursue God in serving Him each day, be reminded of God’s promises to us and the example Jesus gave to us as the perfect servant.
The following benefits of serving God helped turn my heart and head toward the Lord and fueled me with encouragement to faithfully serve God where He’s placed me today. It is my hope that these reminders bring encouragement to you as well!
Be filled by His strength, fueled by His love, and immersed in His grace to keep pursuing Him faithfully.
Benefits of Serving God – Preparation.
As we saw with David, his diligence and faithfulness in where he was placed as a shepherd boy prepared him for where God would eventually place him as king and shepherd over His people.
Each day that we serve God faithfully is another day we are being prepared for His future work.
How might God be preparing you today for the future work He has in store for you tomorrow?
Benefits of Serving God – Practice.
Many times what we may see as mundane or even may consider as “less-than” is our opportunity to practice obedience and dedication to the Lord.
God’s word tells us, “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.” Luke 16:10
God uses all things – big or small – to build upon His purpose.
What opportunities to practice obedience may God be stretching you in?
Benefits of Serving God – Patient trust.
God’s word tells us in Psalm 27:4, “Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.”
There’s no better time to build patient trust than the “in-between” time of promises spoken and promises fulfilled. The Lord tells us “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10 ESV
Are you trusting God to be faithful and fulfill His promises?
Related: Waiting on God
Benefits of Serving God – Grow.
Jesus was our great example of humble dedication to our Heavenly Father and when we faithfully serve Him each day, we are growing to be more like our savior. In the Potter’s hands he molds, shapes, refines, stretches, and grows us.
Philippians 2:6-8 speaks on the attitude of Christ and his humble position of obedience to God. Submitting ourselves to God is where growing begins. This is really where the rubber meets the road. Do we believe what God says and promises? Are we willing to commit to His words?
What areas need to be surrendered in order to grow in having the same attitude as Christ?
Serving God Wholeheartedly
What happened between taking David from tending sheep to making him the shepherd-king of God’s own people?
David served God wholeheartedly while on God’s training ground. Through highs and lows, He found His safe-keeping, security, and strength in the Lord.
Even more so than David, we’ve been given the example of Jesus as our perfect model to faithfully serve God. There is no one else we can better imitate than Jesus our Savior.
Philippians 2 shows us that Jesus both willingly and voluntarily gave up his rights to serve his Father God and to serve mankind. Those words – willingly and voluntarily – make me grimace when I consider my own heart a lot of times and my tendency towards selfishness.
It also humbles me to consider my Jesus – in faithful servitude to God – set aside his crown, heaven, and the Father’s presence to be subject to human limitations, a crown of thorns, and separation from the Father for me to become rich in Him. For my sake! And for yours.
You know this by the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though he was rich, yet for your sakes, he became poor, so that by his poverty he could make you rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9
Our Savior King modeled serving God wholeheartedly and gave us himself to walk it out each day through His Spirit! What a gift! What a privilege to serve God faithfully!
Related: For Your Sake Devotional
Importance of Serving God with Joy
When it comes to serving God faithfully, there’s a huge difference between serving God wholeheartedly or being driven by ulterior motives and drudgery obedience. The difference? JOY.
The latter tends to be fueled by a heart set on me and not God. Oh, but how true is God’s word that our joy comes from the Lord! Psalm 16:11
Nehemiah 8:10 tells us: It is the joy of the Lord that is our strength.
As we faithfully serve God, He supplies us with endless resources to daily serve those He’s placed in our life. With Paul, we can rejoice, “But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God, just like your faithful service is an offering to God.” Philippians 2:17
What we offer of ourselves to others in faithful service is a living offering we lay before God! Lord, may we serve you well and with joy!
Serving God Faithfully
We are rich by the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ! Serving God faithfully comes from this abundance and we can trust God to mold us daily into the likeness of His Son when we daily pursue Him.
How is the Lord using this training ground to take you from tending to becoming…
Wherever you may find yourself, with whomever He’s placed in your life to serve, with whatever role or responsibilities He’s placed upon you are each there today for a purpose.
Remain faithful!
For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many. Mark 10:45
Additional verses for serving God.