Craig Clouston

Why Bother, LORD?

I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. John 15:16

Lost in thought, I didn’t hear my cell phone buzz. I was pondering the reason I was even finishing the second volume in my devotional series. Volume one: Snapshots: A Spiritual Look At Daily Life, released in 2009, had yet to break the one thousand book sales barrier. So why did it matter that I complete the second volume?

The phone’s second buzz registered, letting me know there was a message. “Hi Craig!” came Molly’s familiar voice. “I wanted to let you know God is still using you! I just spoke with a man that’s going through some tough times, and he had a copy of Snapshots! He said someone gave it to him after he shared about his struggles! I told him, ‘I know the author, and God has been using him and that book to change people’s lives!’”

As I listened, Molly’s voice was drowned out by God’s, “What you do for Me is more important than you can conceive. I weave your fruit through other’s lives, drawing them closer to Me. Numbers are arbitrary in light of eternity. Your faithfulness, in spite of the doubt, allows Me to nourish others, and give them hope.”

I wept. God had orchestrated events so my doubts would be put to rest. I opened my laptop and wrote this devotion.

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In our humanity, attaching expectations to our spiritual service isn’t unusual. We want God to do wonderful and meaningful things with our service. When we don’t readily see results we can begin to doubt that what we do matters. We wonder, “Why do I bother, Lord?” As a result, our service to the Lord can lose the enthusiasm and devotion it was begun with which, in turn, negatively influences our relationship with God and others.

In today’s text, John tells us God has chosen and purposed us to not only work on His behalf, but that our work will affect future generations.

When your doubt whispers, why bother?, don’t give up. Stand in faith, trusting God’s promise that what we do matters more than we can ever imagine.

Prayer

“LORD, continue using what You purpose me to do and leave the results of that service to You, expectation free. In Jesus’ Name, amen!”