Doing God’s Work

What an amazing sound and what an experience. First time in three years that we've been able to be together like this. And the last two years have just been horrible as far as talking to empty audiences. Two years ago, I remember speaking to just a camera. I thought, they're out there somewhere. But it's so nice to see all of your faces. And so it was last night as well at the social here in the atrium. It was so good to just to be with one another. We came in, we hardly moved five feet. It was so good to talk to so many of our friends, some that we hadn't seen in some time. So happy Sabbath to all of you and also happy Sabbath to everyone who is watching and listening on the webcast around the world. We welcome all the elders who are here and we look forward to spending time with you, talking to you at this GCE.

Psalm 127 and verse 1. Psalm 127 and verse 1. I'd like to begin here. Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. Unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.

One reason we assemble here at the GCE is to talk about the work of God. The work that God is doing. The house that God is building. Because unless he builds it, unless he is the one who is very much involved in the building of it, the work is in vain. Historically, we've called this the work. It's almost a term that's kind of like in-speak, but it's in the Bible, so it's okay.

We call it the work. When I first came to Ambassador College, it was the work, the work, the work, supporting the work, praying for the work, giving to the work.

And then we ask a question of those of us who are elders here, since we have come here to the general conference of elders. And an important part of being here is to talk about the building of the work.

We ask, how are we involved in the building of the work? Certainly, it's God's work, but we don't sit by idly. What should we be doing? Well, God summarizes the spiritual basis for his overall operation or his operating plan in Isaiah 55 and verse 11. Isaiah 55 and verse 11.

Talks about his word. So shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth. It shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the things for which I sent it. God takes ownership of the work. He takes responsibility for it. And he speaks about the success of the work. We look at the Bible as a chronicle of mankind's history, but it's also a chronicle of the work of God that God has been continually doing.

There are various places, biblically, that speak about the work. One is Romans 9 and verse 27, where the Apostle Paul refers back to Isaiah, Isaiah 10 and verse 23. And here's what he says. He quotes Isaiah 10, 23. Isaiah also cries out concerning Israel. Though the number of the children of Israel be as a sand of the sea, the remnant will be saved. So he talks about some catastrophe that's taken place. But he talks about redemption. He talks about salvation. For he will finish the work and cut it short in righteousness, because the Lord will make a short work upon the earth.

So here's a clue of the fact that there will be some type of work that will be done close to the end of the age. And when it does happen, it'll be rather short. So here we are in the work and asking ourselves exactly what is our responsibility at this time. One passage that I have always enjoyed looking at has been 1 Corinthians chapter 3. And one of our conferences early was a media conference that we had here at the home office when it was still down the hill from where we are.

This is the passage that we focused on. 1 Corinthians chapter 3 and verse 6 through 8. The Apostle Paul writes, I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. The Apostle Paul describes the way that he did the work. He planted, he sowed the seed, he spoke in the Jewish synagogues, he spoke in the public places like at Athens. He planted. He was not necessarily a church pastor, although it looks like an emphasis he was for some time, but he was a planter of churches all throughout Asia Minor and Greece.

Apollos, no doubt a minister, an elder, watered. So he cared for the seed that had been planted. He fed it, probably fed it fertilizer of some sort. But he says it was God that gave the increase. Verse 7, So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters. The planter can't make the plants succeed, or he who waters, but it's God who gives the increase. Now he who plants and he who waters are one, saying they are a team.

And we are that team. We are the ones who are the planters and the waterers. We plant the seeds through media, advertising, Google, public campaigns, other means by which we plant the Word of God in the minds of people. And there are pastors who also come behind and water it. And each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor. The primary source of life, however, is from God, as we examine God's operation plan. I'd like to give you a little bit of history about the starting of our planning and planting the Word of God with the United Church of God.

The United Church of God officially started in Pentecost of 1995. How well we remember. 27 years ago. And shortly afterwards, the board of directors, which is the precursor to the Council of Elders, assembled at our home in Arcadia, California. In our living room, we had a number of them.

I don't think it was all of them. We only had, look, eight, I believe, at that time, but they weren't all there. That was the committee that organized strategic planning. The room was filled with flip charts showing various elements of a plan to do the work. It began with a vision. With seeing. Vision means seeing. People say, what's the vision of your church?

That's the sight. That's what you see. It was seeing where we wanted to go. Where we wanted to end up. And then we talked about a mission. How will we get there? So we asked, where are we going? And how do we get there? I remember so clearly how we sat around to talk about these things. It was so exciting because there had been no other plan before that.

And most of us had very little experience, if any, in planning such things. But we did. That was our first strategic planning meeting. A few key things we began to understand very quickly that dawned upon us. We understood quickly that the spiritual guarantee of effectively accomplishing this plan of work is to understand how it reflects on the work and the will of God.

On His priorities and His will. That was very important. That dawned on us that who are we? Because we were nothing. I'll read this again because this is what we came to very quickly in our discussion. We understood quickly that the spiritual guarantee of effectively accomplishing this plan of work is to understand how it reflects on the work and will of God. On His priorities and His will.

In the early part of the letter to the Ephesians, in the first three chapters in particular, we understand that all spiritual benefits, assets, and spiritual blessings proceed downward from God through Jesus Christ. Ephesians chapter 1 and verse 22. This is a very, very key verse talking about who the head of this church is, who the living head of this church is, and what he's doing right now. Ephesians chapter 1 and verse 22. And he, talking about God the Father, put all things under His feet. That's Jesus Christ. And gave Him to be the head over all things to the church.

God the Father appointed Jesus Christ as the head of the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. We are part of the body, the church of God, Jesus Christ, His one body. Now, what is the ultimate outcome that God wants to achieve? What's it all for? I think it's very important for us to understand these perhaps simple and very basic principles.

It is reflected simply in the scriptural basis of the vision statement of the church, in which Jesus Christ leads us to truly incredible human potential. And that's part of our vision statement. That is the outcome of the work of God. I'll read part of it, Hebrews 2, verse 10. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory.

Sons, children, offspring. That is what He wants to do. He wants to expand His family. That is the outcome of the work of God. To glory. What does glory mean? The sun is glorious. That means it's shining. It's full of light. He wants to make us like the sun. He wants us to be glorious, eternal, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. God has a plan that has very much has us very much in mind, in bringing many partners into that work. There's always been a work. There's always been a work from the time that God worked with Adam and Eve, and all through history, through Noah, through the Exodus, through Jesus Christ, God has always had a work.

But that plan of salvation, if we call it that, the work of God, if we remember that what He wants to do, that His prime goal, is to produce sons and daughters. The plan gives us strategic parameters to consider in doing His work, so that we always know who we are and where we are going, and what we should be doing. There are energizing elements, key scriptural success factors in doing that work of God.

I'll read you four right from the book of Proverbs, because they speak about the attitude, they speak about what we should be doing. And the mindset that we are to have, the mindset that we are to develop in doing that work. From Proverbs 3, verse 5, Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not to your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.

So we are asking God to help us, to show us, and not do it just on our own. Lean not to your own understanding. Proverbs 6, verse 3, or 16, I should say, verse 3, Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established. These are guaranteed success factors, critical success factors. You commit your works to God, say, God, make this work.

Your thoughts will be established. Commit your works. Do what God says. Later in the chapter, verse 9, A man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. God is what who directs us. And then in Proverbs 19, verse 21, There are many plans in a man's heart. Nevertheless, the Lord's counsel that will stand. We just remember that God has a plan, and we need to understand what it is, and what he wants us to do.

The great prophets, apostles, and other leaders of the church, through history, surrendered themselves to God's will in his direction. They understood that Jesus Christ is the living head of the church.

They understood even from Jeremiah's time that God is the one who is directing this work. Some of the key workers, Jeremiah. Jeremiah, who had a very, very tumultuous ministry. One that he fought against great odds to get the word of God out, but that's the responsibility that God gave him in his time. Jeremiah wrote in 1023, O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself. I know that it's not in me and my brightness, even though I have strong feelings and strong ideas, is not in himself.

It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps. The Apostle Paul also very humbly spoke about his role. He found himself as an apostle. First of all, a persecutor, then he jumped to being an apostle, and one who had missions throughout Asia Minor and Greece. And yet, he always looked in town himself with this attitude. For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle. 1 Corinthians 15.9. These are expressions from great men of God, from Jeremiah and from the Apostle Paul. But even Jesus Christ himself in the way that he took on to do the work of God, because he was made into flesh.

He became flesh. And in that particular state, he was not the all-powerful God as he was, because he was physical. Of course, he was God. He could do anything he wanted to perform great miracles.

But this is the way that the Apostle Paul referred to Jesus Christ in Philippians 2. Therefore, if there be any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded. That's what I'm telling all of us here. Fulfill our joy, being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord of what mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit. But in lowliness of mind, let each esteem others better than himself.

Support one another, lift one another up. Consider others better than yourself. Let each of us look not only for our own interests, but also for the interests of others. And then he says instructions to us, the Apostle Paul continuing, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God did not consider it robbery to be equal with God. Not something to be cling to at all costs, because he had a mission, he had a purpose, there were outcomes that he and God the Father were working towards.

But he made himself of no reputation, taking on the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men, and being found in appearance as a man he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. How much humbler can you get? When you see what the James Webb telescope is seeing in nature, all the things that Jesus Christ created through God the Father, or God the Father created through Jesus Christ, and he came down from all that power to become a bond slave and to die for mankind.

What humility! What a lesson to us. To properly accomplish God's plan of work, we in the ministry must always realize that our service is not only about our gifts, or because of our gifts and talents. And I want to commend our ministry for the work that they do. I listen to many sermons by our elders, including our new elders, and I am very, very pleased to hear the depths, to hear the wisdom of our younger ministry coming out along with our older ministry. We have many, many very qualified people coming along very, very well, for which I am very grateful.

But what's important also is the condition of our heart and mind in doing that work, the humility that it takes to do that work, and what God can do with a life that is fully surrendered to him. This is the environment in which God can do His work. The Bible is also filled with vivid examples of people who did not embrace this way, such as Simon Magus in the very early days of the New Testament Church.

In fact, Jesus Christ in his sermon on the Mount warned there would be people that would rise up and become false prophets, enemies of the Church. But the story of Simon Magus in Acts 8 is about a person who loved power, who was a magician, who already had people that followed him. And he saw the work that the apostles were doing, and he wanted to buy that office. The Catholic Church is called Simonie, where you can buy an office.

He came and saw the baptisms. He saw people doing amazing things. These miracles were performed, and he said, I would love this and be important. Another one is diatrophes that is mentioned in 3 John. He was an individual. It looked like he was a pastor of that church that John had written to. And he loved the preeminence. He loved to be considered important. It was so very important for him to be considered as the person for that area.

And he even rejected John, the Apostle John, who was a relative of Jesus Christ, who had known Jesus Christ, who touched him, was one of the original 12 apostles. He wouldn't even allow him to come to his church. These are the people who brought in false teachings. As I was praying and going through the outline of prayer, this is where I'm getting to about the mindset that we ought to have, because this is what's the crux of my sermon.

It's also basically the notes for it are pages 13 and 14 in the operation manual that you receive. This is a letter from the president. I was thinking to myself, what should I write? What topic could I write as president? And as I was reviewing again for the thousandth time the outline to prayer, I saw a pattern. I saw something that was important as a parallel to an outline for prayer, but it was also a mindset for how one ought to be doing the work of God. I found this to be enlightening to me. So I went from one point to another, and it seemed to all kind of fit.

I found this model prayer to be an effective outline in organizing and applying our spiritual assets to fulfill God's operation plan. This outline for prayer contains seven petitions, this is called. Three are to God. Hallowed is your name. Hallowed, your kingdom come, your will be done. And the other four are petitions for us. It is a mindset because it contains the priorities for doing the work of God. There are two places, there are two things in the Bible that almost everybody knows, and you probably know them from memory, that we could recite from memory.

One is a Ten Commandments. I think that almost everyone here could recite them. Sometimes people get a couple of them mixed up, but everybody knows the Ten Commandments. But the other thing that we know from memory that most of us could recite is our Father in Heaven, the model for prayer. Everybody knows this. Our Father in Heaven, Hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors, and do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

These are words that are probably more memorized by more people than any other from the Bible. In Ukraine, among the Sabbateans, there was a joke. They said, He's so dumb, He doesn't know the Lord's Prayer. He's so dumb, He doesn't even know the Our Father, because everybody knows it. Everybody can recite it. Let's take a look at the various elements of this mindset as far as doing the work of God. Number one, Our Father in Heaven, Hallowed be your name. This is the place to start. The place to start in doing the work of God is to look up. Hallowed be your name.

You look with God, to look God with deep honor and respect, with expectation for a relationship with Him, with praise, with thanksgiving. You get out of the way. You try to understand everything about Him. You don't say, God, please understand me. No, no, we need to understand God. Then we can come to understanding ourselves. We trust Him fully. Charles de Gaulle, who led the French during World War II in exile, was known to have this prayer, God, please trust me. He kind of got it backwards.

We trust God. We don't ask God to trust us. And not live a life like we're so great that maybe God can do something through us, but we look to Him to understand every nuance. We're always looking up, always. The work of God begins with God and His purpose in understanding Him. His greatness, His power, His infinity, His eternity. And the more we find out scientifically about all the things that are out there in the universe, we should be even more awed by this and say, thank you, God. We are so tiny. God is eternal. God is infinite. We are temporary.

We will die. We are small. And yet God wants a relationship with us. He wants a relationship that will be one that's a family relationship in making us His children. Part of an expanding family. Is that the way we think? The work of God begins with that understanding, that realization. We're always looking up. Next, we pray, number two. Your kingdom come. As far as doing the work of God.

Your kingdom come. There's probably nothing that's spoken of more thoroughly from beginning to end as a subject than the kingdom of God. It's what His operating plan proclaims and prepares. Hallowing His name looking up. Your kingdom come is looking out and around as to what is to be done, but is to be important. Now, what is it about the urgency of the coming kingdom of God? Because your kingdom come. It's already suggested that that kingdom is not here by coming, even though we can't accept it.

Be preparing for it. Preparing for it coming to this earth. But what is it that we don't understand about the kingdom of God and its importance? The doomsday clock has probably been updated with 100 seconds to midnight. 100 seconds out of a 24-hour clock. But we're very close to the end of this age. We're under Damocles's sword. Something could break very, very quickly. 100 million people.

A billion people could die very, very quickly. We've seen all the saber rattling by the Russians, and it's real. Those types of things can happen. There could be exchanges that could wipe out life on this planet. But you know something? We get tired of hearing about this. We get to be culturally numb.

So much on the news is Ukraine. I'm not going to talk about Ukraine, because it just makes us numb. Oh, no. More buildings, more people dead, just more war. And after the first weeks of the war, it's just the same thing over and over again. We don't want to hear about it. We don't want to hear about China.

We don't want to hear about COVID. We've heard about COVID for two years. It still keeps cropping up. And every time it does, we're inure to it. It's a collective numbness that we have about it. Even the economy. Of course, when we see gas up at $4.50 a gallon, we take some interest. But then even that is something that I don't want to hear about that. This morning, I received a couple of little clips from Ukraine of little children praying today at Sabbath Services in Ukraine. It was so touching to me.

So touching to have five six-year-old children crying, praying at home. Saying, God, please protect us from the tanks. Please help those people who have lost their home and who have lost brothers and sisters. And they're crying. I'm saying, I can't do anything about it. It is so touching. This is happening over and over again.

Russian television last week or a couple of weeks ago showed how they could destroy the United Kingdom in Ireland in one shot with a hundred-megaton bomb. That's wonderful. That's exciting. That's human. With drones, submarines, hypersonics, the dreadfulness is endless. It is so horrific that we just tune out.

But nonetheless, our job is to proclaim the kingdom of God. Because while there is a doomsday clock, the same clock is the kingdom of God clock. If the doomsday clock is a hundred seconds, figuratively speaking, so is the kingdom of God, which is coming closer to us. Christ's keynote address when he came to start his ministry was in Mark chapter 1 in verse 15. He wrote, or he said, the time is fulfilled. Mark chapter 1, verse 15. The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel. In his Sermon on the Mount, he says, Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. And at the very end, in Matthew 24, 14, the gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations and then the end will come. It's a theme occurring all the way through, and it may have been the very, very doctrine or teaching that brought you to this church, to the truth of God. It was for me when I found out what that kingdom was, that it wasn't something ethereal or it wasn't heaven, wasn't something here already, it was something that is coming to this earth that made sense as an answer to this world's ills.

Number three, your will be done.

This is God's work and not ours. We want to say, God, what do you want? What is your will?

We don't proceed in the standalone course of our own wisdom, but we're asking continually, God, what do you want?

And what God really wants, what His will is, and what He's focusing all that He's doing, because family is important to God. Being able to expand Him from God the Father and Jesus Christ to more brothers and sisters is what's top of mind for Him. That's His will. And that particular outcome is His will. Everything is working towards developing that family and bringing them to glory, as Paul wrote in Hebrews 2 and verse 10, many children to glory. That should be our vision. And actually, our vision, the vision of the United Church of God, is the will of God. Seeing the end, bringing many children to glory. It is the outcome of salvation. And what we see in our work, what outcome do we want to achieve from everything that we do, whether it's preaching the Gospel through the written Word or whether it's preaching it on television, it's to preach the outcome of salvation. It's not about our income. It's not about all the activity that we do. And the output is about outcomes. The work of God is all about outcomes. And the most important outcome is bringing many children to glory. Jesus Christ made a very, very interesting statement. This is when He was in His last hours here on the earth. And He made this statement in Luke chapter 24, 22, I should say, in verse 42. Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me. He said, if there's any other way, then to have Me die, take this cup away from Me. Nevertheless, not My will, but Your will be done. And God the Father and Jesus Christ already had predetermined that the only way to be able to develop the kind of character, the voluntary character, the kind of nature that would be their nature of God the Father and Jesus Christ already, was through the process that they were taking it through, the redemption that came through Jesus Christ. And He said, let Your will be done, because that was already predetermined. Let Your will be done. Ephesians chapter 5, verse 17, See them that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Part of doing the work of God is always being aware, what is God's will? What does He want? What does He want us to say? What should I be preaching about this week? How could I help this process along towards the glorification of His sons?

4. Give us this day our daily bread.

Give us this day our budget. Give us this day our gasoline. Give us this day what we need to be able to do the work. I am so grateful for the last nine years that we have been able to be in the black every year, that God provided us what we were asking for. I always prayed to God to provide for the proclamation of the work of God and for supplying the manpower that we needed and the finances to do so. We had nine years of flat interest, pretty much. We continually ask for resources to fulfill God's plan of work before us. But this will be part of perhaps an accelerated or more active prayer that we have. Give us this day our daily bread, what we need to do for the work of God. We look out for what we need to have. A few years back, we modified the strategic plan to add organizational stewardship to it, which is how we manage our revenue, our employees, and areas relating to how we take care of this work. But we're going to have to be praying more fervently about this as those needs arise. There's always talk of food shortages, inflation, the ability to do the work of God. And to however the treasurer works, that's going to be very much in mind of thinking ahead as to what might be needed. Number five, forgive us our sins. Forgive our debts. Matthew 6, verse 12. We all fall short of the glory of God, but our work is one of fostering repentance, reconciliation, and transformation. A big part of our work is to talk about repentance. In fact, the work of God began not only with a kingdom of God statement, but repent and believe the gospel.

Jesus Christ, the same moment that he spoke about the kingdom of God is at hand. The repent for the kingdom of God is at hand. We've got to change. We've got to say, I'm sorry. I'm not living the way I should. It's a work of forgiveness, of sin, and change, transformation. Also, the work of God, as it began in Jerusalem, in the sermon that Peter gave in the day of Pentecost, he said, after he preached about the nation killing Christ, they said, what shall we do? Peter responded in Acts 2, verse 38, Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. An important part of our work is to fostering repentance. We are a work of reconciliation. We are a work of forgiveness, making things right, and living that example.

When we talk about bringing people along up the ladder of involvement in the church, what is it? It's bringing them to repentance, of a lifestyle change, a doctrine change. They come to a point where they ask God for forgiveness, and then come to repentance. What does it take to be baptized? Repent.

Number six, protection and deliverance. Lead us not into temptation or trial.

We must ask God for, continually, for protection and direction. I would say that that's one thing that I prayed for a lot with God and the church. How are we going to get through this? How are we going to get through COVID? How are we going to get through the controversies that we have? How are we going to get through some of the difficult employees or difficult people that we have? How are we going to get through the COVID situation where there are all kinds of different ideas, no matter what you say you get stung? This has been one of the biggest prayers of my tenure as president, is to pray for protection for his people, for the church. I'm thankful that God has answered us over and over again. We've not had a blow-up in a major crisis. Now, we've lived the last two years. It was almost a once-in-a-lifetime crisis occurring every month. Just something always there. This is part of doing the work, is to be aware of this, protect us, and to deliver us.

And finally, the last element, the last petition, is deliver us from the evil one.

We daily wage a spiritual warfare.

Satan the devil is the God of this world. He's the God of entertainment. He's the God of everything that's out there. He's the God of education in the world. He is the God of this world. He knows his time is just about up.

And he's going to become more and more violent and hateful towards us. And stir us up against one another.

We wage a daily spiritual warfare against this adversary, who seeks to divide, destroy.

In fact, he's called a destroyer, Abaddon, in Greek.

He's a deceiver who lies to us.

He's the father of liars. And he's one who devours, as it's stated, in James or Peter.

As I started out this sermon in Psalm 127, unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. And we pray for God to protect us and to help us continually, over and over again.

At the end of that seven petitions, there's a reprise.

Jesus goes back and says two more things, which are repeat of two of the petitions.

Matthew 6, verse 13, For yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen. As he concludes that, which he's mentioning the kingdom of God again, because it is so important. There's nothing more important than to preach that kingdom. And then he concludes with verse 14, For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive yours.

But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your responses or your trespasses.

So it's very important about the kingdom of God, about forgiveness, reconciliation, and to be examples of that.

I'd like to conclude with a final note here.

We had a sermon that was given in Louisville in the early days of the United Church of God. It was one of those showstopper sermons where, oh man, he really said something that really hit the spot.

The speaker said that to do the work of God, we personally have to be a work.

We have to be a work.

We have the marvelous blessing of having all this knowledge in the ministry, in the way that we preach the loudest, is through our example, and the way our members preach the loudest and really make an influence and others, whether it be at work or in their neighborhood, is by the example that they set.

Is the Spirit of God proceeding from our lives where people see something different in your life?

For this work to be credible, it must be reflected in Christian conduct, heart, attitude, and spirit.

To do the work of God, we have got to be the work of God.

How are we affecting the lives of others?

My final scripture is this one here, because this scripture really has encouraged me this past week.

Some of us may feel like, what have we done? What have we accomplished?

Does it matter?

I know I hear from the ministry about lives as we get older. What really have we accomplished?

And the Apostle Paul writes in Hebrews 6, verse 10, For God is not unjust.

He will not forget your work.

He will not forget his ministry. He will not forget all of you.

And the love you have shown for his name.

You have. Maybe we don't realize it, but God is far more generous with us than we are with ourselves.

He is so happy with the fact that you're here. He's so happy with what you are doing.

He's not judgmental towards you if you show any effort of coming to him.

That you have shown for his name as you have ministered to the saints and continue to do so. Let me read that again.

For God is not unjust. He will not forget your work.

And the love you have shown for his name.

As you have ministered to the saints and continue to do so.

Let's continue to do that. We need to stick together.

Look at the seven petitions in the prayer, model prayer, as a parallel to how we are to have the mindset of doing the work of God.

We have done what we have done and what we have sacrificed for.

We have all sacrificed a lot to do this kind of work.

We've taken detours from our lives. We've done things that we wouldn't have in another occupation.

Your life has had meaning, and God knows and remembers that.

You will be rewarded because of what you have done, and for him and for his people.

Never forget that.