Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. 1Corinthians 15:58
I’ve never met a woman who thought labor pains felt good. We have Adam and Eve to thank for that. In fact, I’ll go out on a limb and say most women are thanking God right now for an epidural! Thank God I am not a woman. Men are not equipped mentally or physically to handle the birthing process first hand. Some of us even have a problem as onlookers. But any mother who has gone through it would agree that the end result, a new-born child, a life, a miracle in itself, is well worth it. Otherwise women wouldn’t keep doing it over and over again. (Going through that once would be enough for me, I’ve seen it!)
The baby far outweighs the short-term discomforts of the labor process. So it is with your labor in the Lord. Labor can be defined as physical or mental work, especially that of a fatiguing kind; or toil. 1Thessalonians 1:3 and Hebrews 6:10 speak of the “labor of love”. Saints it is labor to love some folk. Jesus has always been alright with me, but some of his friends are strange. Yet we are commanded to love. We have no power without love, that’s why the Father has placed so much emphasis on it. Remember, God is love. If we get the love part right, then all other aspects of ministry work will fall into place.
God tells us in His Word that our labor is not in vain. What you do for the Lord has not gone unnoticed. God sees. God knows. God rewards. And if one person comes to know the Lord either directly or indirectly because of your efforts, isn’t that worth it?
