It is my prayer that every Christian recognizes the importance of serving God through the way we serve others.  There are few things, if any, that are as emotionally exhilarating, and draining, as the task of serving others.  Having worked in a variety of ministry settings, including various roles within Christian camp ministry, I understand the excitement that often comes with the beginning of a new ministry or ministry season.  I also understand the weariness than can develop when our focus begins to drift away from the ministry of serving and onto ourselves.

This is day three in the twelfth week of devotions from the book, “Serving God: Devotions for Active Worship”.  This devotional book is laid out in thirteen weeks of daily devotions with each week wrapped around an aspect of how we can serve others.  Each of these devotions are designed to help a person spend time with God to see how serving others is an act of worship.

Serving God:
Purity Of Heart

“Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity.
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.“
Psalm 51:9-12 (NIV)

Do you consider yourself to be an emotional person?  Would your closest friends agree with your answer?  How often are your actions driven by your emotions?  When are some times your emotions have led you to say or do something that you later realized you shouldn’t have?  When are some times when your emotions have led you in a good direction?  What made the difference?  How does having a purity of heart (emotions) help you to serve others well?

While not everyone displays or expresses their emotions in the same ways, we all have emotions that can drive us to serve well or to serve poorly.  In the American culture I live in, when I think of God creating in me a pure heart, I think of having pure emotions.  The emotions that we feel and experience are not a surprise to God.  The emotions are His gift to us but how we react to them and what we do with them is our choice.  Love, hate, anger, sadness, and whatever emotion you want to list, have all been experienced by God yet He does so in a way that is completely pure.  As you pray, ask God to help you be pure in heart at all times.  Pray that the emotions that well up within you would be pure as you serve others.

In prayer,

Tom