Friday, December 14, 2007

From The Preacher's Desk


Making a Difference

“Let you light so shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise you Father in Heaven.”
Matthew 5:16

In high school, I worked as a busboy at a yacht club in Charlotte Harbor, Florida. One day the employees were told that the board members were coming to inspect the club and that everything had to be in “tip top shape.” Unfortunately, I was assigned to clean the men’s restroom. I remember being a little upset, but I quickly grabbed the cleaning supplies and gave it a quick cleaning—it looked pretty clean to me before I even started. In a few minutes, I reported to our manager that I was finished.

Later in the day, the board members began their inspection. I overheard one of the members ask the manager, “Is anyone going to clean the men’s restroom?” The manager came over and whispered to me, “Did you clean it, or not?” I insisted I had cleaned it.

The manager later told me something I’ve always remembered: “It wasn’t a matter of whether you cleaned it or not. The point was that he wasn’t able to tell you cleaned it.” I guess my boss was right—I tried to justify my work, but in reality, my effort had made no noticeable difference.

What about my spiritual life? Am I really working as a servant of God’s or am I merely going through the motions? People should be able to see the difference a life devoted to Christ makes. I must put all my heart and soul into my Christian life so that others will see Christ at work in my life.

~Robert Combs

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