“What can be done to awaken believers to a sense of their holy calling, and to make them see that to work for God, that to offer themselves as instruments through whom God can do His work, ought to be the one aim of their life. The vain complaints that are continually heard of a lack of enthusiasm for God’s Kingdom on the part of the great majority of Christians…makes us feel that nothing less is needed than a revival that shall be a REVOLUTION and shall raise even the average Christian to an entirely new type of devotion. No true change can come until the truth is preached and accepted, that the law of the Kingdom is: Every believer to live ONLY and WHOLLY for God’s service and work.” From the Book: Working for God, by Andrew Murray

So how do you react to this?

Do you feel that most Christians you know are devoted to giving God glory each and every day?

If you reflect on your life do you think you are fully dedicated to serving God in all that you do?

St. Paul says something very powerful in the Scriptures. He says,

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31

If we were to truly live this Scripture then we would be continously aware that we are living in the presence of God and we would be mindful that every action we take must honour God. So if, for example, we work hard at our jobs we will give God glory regardless of what that job is. But if we take advantage of the times our boss is not supervising us, then we will fail to give God glory by not applying ourselves with the integrity and honesty that He desires.

Perhaps one of the most important jobs most of us have to do is to raise our children in a way that will teach them about God, about His love and His kindness and about His great expectations that we will live as positive examples in the world.

I remember teaching a group of children about Jesus when I asked them this question: “what do you want to be when you grow up?” Even though they were only 10 and 11 years old they all had many plans for their life, but one little girl truly surprised me when she said, “I want to be JESUS!”

How many of us realize that Jesus is living within us and if we truly surrender our lives to Him then we can be Jesus in the world! We are the Body of Christ! We are on earth to fulfill the plans He has for us.

Recall the Words that Jesus said to His apostles before ascending into heaven: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20

In a digital world we have some powerful ways to evangelize and make disciples of all nations. For the last five years I have been using the social network facebook to share reflections on the Word of God and even in the last 18 months there have been over five million ‘likes’ to the posts I have shared. When you ‘like’ or ‘share’ a reflection on the Word of God or share anything online that might inspire someone to become kinder, more merciful or more generous you are working for God. So let’s ensure that our ‘online profiles’ feature images and text that give God glory. If you have something attached to your profile that is in any way offensive to God remove it today.

“Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:18-20

When we think about working for God, we often think about larger, more complex missions, but God is glorified in the smallest deeds. For example, have you ever considered that you could visit a retirement home to talk to someone who never gets any visitors? I was surprised at how many people I met in retirement homes who were so lonely because no one visited them. If you are willing to smile and just listen and have some friendly conversation, you could make someone’s day!

There are also many, many people in the world who have no one to pray for them. Did you ever think of prayer as ‘working for God’? Prayer is considered a ‘spiritual work of mercy’. Too often we only pray for ourselves or those we know, but if we want to truly be God’s we have to be open to praying for those in most need of God’s mercy. We have to be willing to pray for criminals, terrorists, rapists, murderers…why? Because only God’s grace can restore them to a state of grace so they can stop hurting people!

Another way we can work for God continuously throughout the day is by choosing to lift people up with our words. I remember reading a story about a school that wanted to send out a congratulatory ‘keep up the good work’ to its high performing students. They pulled a list of names out of the database and the letter of encouragement was sent, except they found out later that a mistake had been made. They sent the letter of encouragement to the students that were struggling and not performing well and you know what happened? Many of those low performing students started to get better grades after they received the note of encouragement.

Jesus “gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds.” Titus 2:14

Sometimes we will do those good deeds on our own and sometimes, financial resources permitting, we can fund someone else that is feeding the poor, sheltering the homeless, assisting the sick, helping the refugees etc.

“Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others.” 1 Timothy 6:17-18

“Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.” Proverbs 14:31

If we want to honour God with our lives and work for Him and give Him glory then we need to take these four steps forward.

Think of yourself as a precious ‘vessel of God’, a consecrated chalice, devoted to working for God, set apart for His special purposes.

Step #1 – We need to consecrate our lives to God and confess our sins so God can purify our lives.

A vessel of honour must be empty and clean as it begins its work for God. We must humble ourselves before God and give Him the sacrifice He will not despise: “My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.” Psalm 51:17 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 We all need to be purified by God’s mercy. “If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.” 1 John 1:10

Step #2 – We need to be filled with the Holy Spirit and sanctified by the Holy Sacraments.

At Baptism we were purified and filled with the Holy Spirit but when we sin the Holy Spirit departs from us. So let us pray once again for the Holy Spirit to bless us and fill us with holy inspiration on how we can serve God.   Let us receive the Sacraments of Confession and the Holy Eucharist so we can be cleansed of our sins and nourished by the Body and Blood of Jesus.

Step #3 – Trust in Jesus, Pray and Wait on Him

Sometimes we might discover instantly what to do for Jesus and sometimes it takes a lot of prayer and contemplation on God’s Word. That time when we wait on God to give us His answer is the time it takes for the ‘soil’ to be made ready for the ‘seed’ of God’s holy inspiration. I studied God’s Word for five years before I began evangelizing and sharing spiritual reflections online. It took time for God to prepare me for this mission of evangelization.

Step #4 – Take Action and Work for Him in Everything you do, Persevere!

Consider your talents and gifts. We don’t have to be a genius to work for God. We just have to be willing to give Him our hearts and let Him use us in some way. “He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Luke 10:2 You are the worker and God needs you!

Please join the Body of Christ that is stopping to give glory to Jesus each day at the time He died for us, 3pm, in our local time zones. Stop at this time and remember the Passion of Christ and pray as ONE Body of Christ for a Second Pentecost, for a coming of the Holy Spirit upon all souls, so that all souls can be reconciled to God! Consider the POWER of all believers UNITED, turning to God with trust, humbly, calling upon God to restore our souls and our world. God will answer us!

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14

Learn more about The Mercy Movement here.