The Child

At church this Sunday morning, there was a beautiful sketch of Christ leaning his face against a child in an embrace of love. As I looked at the picture I couldn’t help but feel that I wanted to be that child. Lord just hold me close like that and love me. With no cares, no worries, no responsibilities, just in the moment with Jesus. Then it came to me that although, I get caught up in being a “grown up “ Christian, I am always that child.

It is true that faith without works is dead. The church has a job to do in winning the souls of the lost and comforting those in need.  But even the most valiant and courageous soldier must sometime remove his armor.

What parent among you does not long to have your grown children be small just one more time?  You want to embrace them, protect them, and love them while their trust in you is so complete. Their trust is not affected by hardship or disappointment. All they have is love.

Scripture says “if we have faith of a little child”.  Take time to be that child again. We don’t always have to come to Christ with works, prayer or even with praise. Sometimes we can just come be with him to love him and to let him love on us. We should never forget that we are above all else, children of the king and his capacity for loving us is unlimited.

The Handmaiden

In a royal household there are many servants. They may be housemaids, cooks, servers, butlers, managers, and many more all with various roles and duties to fulfill. Each position is important and is necessary to insure the proper function of the household. But I want to focus on the position of the royal handmaiden.

Throughout history, the masters of any house would have personal attendants. These attendants were the closest to the master of all their servants. They would continuously faithfully carry out the bidding of their masters and were the most trusted of all the servants. Not only were they the most trusted of all servants, but they were most often women.

In our Master’s house there are many servants positions as well. Prophets, shepherds, healers, prayer warriors, missionaries, teachers name just a few of these servants.  But still there is a special place in our Lords house for the handmaid of Christ.

The handmaid of Christ walks with him daily. She listens for his every word and is ready at a moment’s notice to do his will. She places her needs and wants aside to fulfill the duties of her position. She is cautious of her words and deeds so as to not bring shame upon her masters house. Hers is a position of honor and she is held dear to the Master’s heart.

To be a faithful handmaid there are some things you must do.

Spend time with him. Find time in your life to devote to prayer and listening for his voice. He will speak to you and tell you what he desires of your life.

Be sure that whatever task you feel led to is His will and not your own. One sure way to tell His will is that it is never the easy way. No task given by God has been comfortable or easy. If it is easy for you then it is not a sacrifice and is most likely serving a need of your own and not a need of Christ. However, the blessings you receive will more than make up for any hardship you may face.

Be resolute.  When you know in your heart that the Master has called you for a purpose despite anything the world may say, you must be determined to achieve it.

Be faithful. Do not grow weary of the task. For God’s grace will increase your strength, your faith and your ability.

Be humble. Remember your position of service is an honor given by His grace and mercy.

Remember, that being a servant close to your Master places you in the position to truly know his heart. Then as you know His heart, yours will be the hands that wipe away the tears of the hurting. Yours will be the arms that comfort the sick and lonely. Yours will be the hands that feed the hungry. Yours will be the tongue that speaks encouragement to the weak.  Yours will be the heart to give love to the unlovely.

We are all to serve as the handmaids or man servants of Christ. We are the children of God and joint heirs with him. But until our time of inheritance, we hold a place of honor and trust with our Lord. We have the great honor of serving His will in this life.