Devotions 09-08-07

I Timothy 6:1-2
Let all who are under the yoke as slaves regard their own masters as worthy of all honor so that the name of God and our doctrine may not be spoken against. And let those who have believers as their masters not be disrespectful to them because they are brethren, but let them serve them all the more, because those who partake of the benefit are believers and beloved. Teach and preach these principles.

When I am working for someone I should honor them so the name of God and the truths of God will not be spoken against. When I have a believer as a boss I must not disrespect him but serve him all the more because those who will be blessed by my boss are my brothers and loved by God. I must teach and preach these principles to others.

It is interesting that God makes a special note of how I should treat those believers over me. You would think that people would naturally want to do this but in reality the opposite is true. Because of our sinful nature we often expect more ease when working for a believer than an unbeliever. We should do our best at all times but when I am working for a believer I should want to do a little extra because he is my brother in Christ. I want to help him to be successful because when he excels then he will bring honor to the Lord as well.

I have sought to do this all my life but I realize this morning that I need to evaluate more regularly how I am doing to make sure I have not slipped. Am I doing this for those I am responsible to and do they see my work as one of excellence. I know I can improve and I do realize that I have slipped in some issues over time. I also need to be more faithful in teaching others to do their work with excellence. I have not honored my donors as I ought because of my lack of communications. Lord, help me to correct this quickly.