“Atta Girl”

Hear, my son, your father’s instruction, and forsake not your mother’s teaching, for they are a graceful garland for your head and pendants for your neck.                  Proverbs 1:8-9

 

Fight abortion. Stand firmly for God’s plan for marriage. Expose evil deeds. Fight political injustice. Teach the Bible.

All of these honor God.

But do not forget to show love to the fatherless and the widow, to be a presence in your home and a joyous mother of her children.

There is some prideful trait in many of us that wants to be recognized, to hear, “atta girl,” for the work we do for Christ.  I am not immune to this desire as I love it when I am appreciated. It is a human characteristic to want to be affirmed. Often, we recommend affirmations as a way to build relationships and as a step to heal hurt marriages.

God commands us to bear the fruit of our salvation (John 15:6). He clearly teaches that each person has received different gifts and that each gift is meant to contribute to the building up of the whole body of Christ. (1 Corinthians 12). The one who refuses opportunities to use hers for the body of Christ is forfeiting great blessing.

When the desire for recognition from man becomes great we sometimes look to these more public “works” because there is more recognition for them. When we stand and fight – as we should – against murdering babies or lobby our political leaders for traditional marriage  – we are doing the right things. We are standing firm for Biblical truth.

But Matthew 6:1 warns that if our desire is to be rewarded (recognized and praised) by men, we will have no reward from God.

There is great work to do to advance the Kingdom of God. The point I want to make is that all we do is (or should be) a work for Christ. We  glorify Him by teaching the next generation to love and serve Him, by wiping sticky fingers, and cleaning the house. We glorify Him when we challenge a politician to follow biblical principles in the way he conducts himself in office. Our work may look different when our children are young than it will when they have adopted scriptural truths for themselves and are living to love and serve the Lord.

The people at home are as important as the baby in the womb. So, how are things at “home?” Is the widow next door or the fatherless child in your congregation being ministered to? Is there love at home? Are we standing so firm for God’s plan for marriage in the capital that we are not serving as our own husband’s helpmate?

Serving the Lord in the things that look small may be as important or more important than serving in those areas that look big.  My “Atta Girls” goes to you who are faithfully serving the Lord for His glory and not the recognition of men.