Our Place of Service Through God’s Power

June 26, 2024

I know not everyone would agree, but I think fishing can be a lot of work.

I mean take these two guys in the photo. They are actually brothers we ran into on a camping trip earlier this year. I noticed they’d caught a few fish that morning. Now, I don’t think you just wake up one day, having not prepared at all, and make your way to the nearest body of water and instantly become a successful fisherman.

You could tell they’d put some time and effort into becoming successful fishermen.

Start by their clothing. It was a warm day, and while one knew shorts, short sleeves and a wide-brimmed hat was exactly what he needed, the other had long pants, long sleeves, and his own wide-brimmed hat. They each knew what they needed for their day in the sun.

Then the tools of the trade. They had a variety of rods and reels. I’m sure they’d planned, probably based on experience, which ones they would bring with them that day for the type of fish they wanted to catch. They’d loaded the small fishing cart with all the paraphernalia they would use that day, probably with spares of everything. Their cart and cooler had wheels for easy maneuverability, something I’m sure they’d realized long before that day would be needed.

I guess there’s a chance that the day before we saw them, the two gathered around a computer and Googled, “What do I need to be a successful fisherman?”, but more likely, they’d spent a long time wearing assorted clothes, trying different rods and reels, bringing various parts and pieces, and getting their stuff to the fishing spot using a myriad of methods.

All that work got them to where they wanted to be—successful fishermen.

Our Place of Service Through God’s Power #hope #joy #writingcommunity Share on X

The same could be said for our service to God. We could search the internet for what to do to serve God, but it’s more likely we will be successful if we spend the time and energy in preparing and practicing until we find our joyful place of service.

By trial and error, I’ve come to realize that I’m not that handy with tools, I’m not the best cook around, and you’d have a pretty lame party if I was in charge of planning it. So, you wouldn’t come to me to lead a construction ministry, a kitchen ministry, or the social committee for a Sunday School class. But I’ve learned that I enjoy serving God in other areas.

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.” (1 Corinthians 12:4-6, NIV)

You may have heard the saying, “God doesn’t call the equipped, He equips the called.” We see this in the verses above. God calls us to serve Him by giving different people different gifts. But each of us is serving through the work of the same God. It is His power that equips us to serve.

I pray you are able to put in the effort to find your gift and place of service through God’s power.