THANKLESS JOBS

"Well done, good and faithful servant" - Matthew 25:21

There are two jobs I would not want. One is President of the United States. No President ever has it easy. Even men of superior moral character have their every action scrutinized, criticized. Depending of the "spin" that follows they are demonized by some and supported by others only if their personal interests are not undermined by presidential action.

The other is school board member. Depending on the day of the week you run the most vital community institution or its most dangerous. Teachers want you interfere as little as possible with the educational process. Taxpayers want you to do it as cheaply as possible. Parents want you to make schools a safe place as long as you don't make rules that upset their children. Religious groups want you to indoctrinate people. Everybody thinks they can do your better than you, but they don't want to do the work (often involving countless volunteer hours) themselves because they have more important things to do.

I suspect you have your own list of thankless jobs. Coach of the Philadelphia Eagles comes to mind, along with meter maids. When a job is thankless, a person must be motivated by something other than praise. They must believe that they are providing an essential service -- to their country, to their community, to their society. They must believe that their efforts are rewarded by the success of the people they serve rather than by personal awards or approval.

Ultimately, Christians serve--first because it is their calling from God, and then because they know that is they are faithful, they will hear the words of their Lord some day saying "Well done, good and faithful servant." Sometimes the knowledge that in this world they have simply done what they believed was right has to be enough.

(C) 2010. This devotional is published on behalf of the Church of God of Landisville andits friends. You can subscribe to this blog by registering as a follower on Google or you can email the church at coglandisville@coglandisville.org.