Galatians 2:20
“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
A young man, a believer desiring to serve the Lord with all of his heart, worked and worked doing everything he thought would please the Lord. It took all his energy and effort, but the young man kept at it!
One Sunday evening he had finished assisting in a week-long series of meetings. Following the last service he packed up books, Bibles, and other materials until late into the night. He returned to his hotel room exhausted, threw himself across the bed and almost wept. The exhausted man cried out, “Lord, I am through! I can’t keep this up any longer. I am tired to my very core. I will still love and honor you, but from now on someone else will have to carry the load!”
He expected the Lord to be disappointed in him for quitting, but just the opposite happened. It was as though the Lord breathed into his ear, “Finally! You have been doing things for Me that I never asked you to do. Now I can work through you to do My work.” That young man never again felt the heavy burden to demonstrate his love for the Lord by a self-imposed performance.
Are you wearing yourself out trying to please the Lord? I implore you to give up trying to earn your salvation. Listen to Him—then do what He asks you to do. God’s work—done God’s way—will have God’s power!
May God richly bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil