Good morning and welcome to Starting Right with Danny Mac . I'm going to be here every Monday to Friday to help you get a great five-minute start to your day . So grab your cup of coffee , sit back , relax and let me help you start your day right . I recently participated in a Bible study that talked about self-examination .
It seems like maybe a weird topic , since we are Christians , we know that we are who we are because we are in Christ , but the teacher talked about the need for us , particularly if we've been Christians or in the church for a long time , occasionally stop and look at the reasons why we do what we do .
Occasionally , stop and look at the reasons why we do what we do . The answer for most people is obvious it's because I'm doing it for the Lord , and I'm sure that that is true . However , he pushed us to go a little bit further . Why do you continue to do what you do ? The self-examination time of that was quite important .
Why do you continue to serve in the church as an usher ? Is it out of obligation or is it out of joy of serving the Lord ? Why do you even get up and go to church on Sunday morning ? Is it because you feel badly if you won't , or maybe that you'll disappoint God if you don't go . Why do you do what you do ?
The greatest trap that we might fall into is because we feel that people look up to us because we do it . That may not be where you are at , but it's certainly something to consider . Ask yourself am I doing what I'm doing because I like that people look up to me ? No , we are to do everything as under the Lord .
That is the thing that we are taught to do . Colossians 3.23 and 24 tells us that is the thing that we are taught to do . Colossians 3.23 and 24 tells us whatever you do , work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord , not for human masters . So we're to do whatever we do , well , but it is working for the Lord and not for us .
And we're not doing it . So we get the human thanks and pats on the back which good pastors and leaders will give to us anyway , but that shouldn't be the motivation . We want to do it because we're fulfilling God's mandate to show His love to people around us , and whether we get credit for it or not shouldn't matter .
I came across a story that I want to share with you this morning . It's about two churches in a small town . One of them was called Grace Christian Church and the other one was called Grace Baptist .
Now , while these churches got along very well with each other , there was always a sense of competition amongst their youth groups , particularly when it came to baseball . They enjoyed doing things together , but when they got competitive , they were very competitive . The youth pastor at Grace Christian Church was teaching a lesson on servanthood from John , chapter 13 .
That's where Jesus was washing his disciples' feet . Well , to try to get this lesson to stick with the kids and have some real impact on their lives , he divided the kids into groups and he told them to go out into the community and find a practical way to be servants . He said I want you to be Jesus in the city for the next two hours .
He said if Jesus were here , what would he do ? Figure out how he would help people . Two hours later , the kids returned and gave the report on what they had done . One group had done two hours of yard work for an elderly man . Another group bought ice cream treats and delivered them to several widows in the church .
A third group visited a church member in the hospital and gave him a card . Another group went to a nursing home and sang Christmas carols . He had Christmas carols in the middle of August . One elderly resident remarked that it was the warmest Christmas she could remember . But when the fifth group stood up and reported what they had done , everybody groaned .
This group made its way to none other than their arch rival , grace Baptist , where they had asked the pastor if he knew someone who needed help . The pastor sent them to the home of an elderly woman who needed yard work done and there for two hours they mowed the grass , raked the lawn and trimmed the hedges .
When they were getting ready to leave , the woman called the group together and thanked them for their hard work . I don't know how I could get along without you , she told them . You kids at Grace Baptist are always coming to my rescue . Grace Baptist interrupted their youth pastor .
I sure hope you set her straight and told her that you were from Grace Christian Church . Why no , we didn't , said the kids . We didn't think it mattered . It appears those kids got the message even better than their youth pastor did .
In the Bible study I attended , I was encouraged to take some time and examine myself , examine my motivations for what I am teaching , for why I teach , for why I speak , for why I do what I do , and to look at what my expectations are after I've done speaking or after the job has been completed .
Am I looking for the praise of men or am I looking to know that God is pleased with what I have done , and is that all I really need ? It's a good question for all of us and I hope you take some time to think about it today , and I hope you have a great day , my friends . Take care , we will talk again tomorrow .
Thank you for listening today and I invite you to join me Monday to Friday , right here on Starting Right with Danny Mac .