“Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.” ~ Psalm 100:2 

Many years ago I heard someone make the statement, “Attitude is everything!” Someone else has said, “Attitude is the key to blessing!” As I was reading through my Bible this week, I came to Deuteronomy 28 where the Lord warned Israel of the curses that would come upon them if they chose to ignore the Word of God and live disobedient lives. In this long chapter of 68 verses, there are countless warnings of the curses that would result in living contrary to the teachings of God’s Word. But in verse 47 I found an interesting statement: “Because thou servedst not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things;”  

There is a great danger in robotic obedience. God expects, yea, God DESERVES the joyful, gladhearted service of His people. When we serve the Lord robotically, or grudgingly, we dishonor the Lord considering all that He has done so willingly for us! We are not deserving of the least of His mercies, yet he showers us with blessings every day. Just as it would be wrong for us to NOT serve Him, it is also wrong not to serve Him joyfully! Please allow that truth to sink into your heart and mind! 

Not only does robotic service dishonor the Lord, but it also makes it so easy to slip away from the Lord altogether. As humans, we tend to favor those things which we enjoy and disregard the things which we do not! If I have lost the joy of the Lord in my service, it is only a matter of time until I will forsake it! 

May we never allow our service to become just “something that we do”! May we keep a fresh and joyful spirit that clearly remembers WHY we are serving our great God! 

Pastor Bish