This is For You, Jesus

Several years ago we had the privilege of caring for my mother in her final illness. One week we invited a new family in town to church and to our home for Sunday lunch. After the rest of the family left for church that morning, I was busily running back and forth between the kitchen and mother's bedroom.

On one of my trips up the stairs to mother's room, words of an old song came to me, "What thou spendest I'll repay when I come again." The joy I had that day knowing He saw I was doing my work for Him was all the payment I needed.

The key to an intimate love relationship with God is to hunger for Him and to be eager to do more for Him. One way to keep our soul longing for more of God is to do all we do in His name. How tenderly the Lord receives our offerings of made-up beds, errands run for an elderly parent, help with a child's science project, a kind word to a hurting co-worker. All of these can be offered up with an "I am doing this because I love You, Lord. I am living to express You."

Mother Teresa and her co-workers prayed daily, "Make us worthy, Lord, to serve our fellow men throughout the world who live and die in poverty and hunger." Why did they pray "Make us worthy" to serve the poorest of the poor? In serving them, they felt they were literally serving their Lord, who said, "As you did it unto the least of these My brethren, you did it to me." They were seeking to be worthy to serve Him.

Jesus, receive all I do or say today as though I'm doing it for You.

 "How can I repay the Lord for all his goodness to me?" (Psalm 116:12).