Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ. (Colossians 3:23–24)
As Nehemiah’s surely was in Nehemiah 11, my mind is flooded with the faces of those who worked behind the scenes over the years so that I could remain focused on the task of leadership. My wife faithfully and consistently supported me, encouraged me, worked with our children, and even took on the huge responsibility of leading our radio ministry, Insight for Living.
I think of staff members who stuck with it day in and day out; the board members and officers who filled strategic roles while holding down full-time employment; the people who prayed, who helped in the nursery, who taught, who worked in our library, who gave, who counselled, who visited. Without them, my life would have been reduced to an endless list of tedious details that would have become the enemy of my ministry. I give God praise for each one of them who have willingly stood beside me without the benefit of public applause.
Allow me to share some timeless truths with you. The first one is this: Your gifts make you valuable, although not necessarily famous. If you are gifted in an area that will never reach the spotlight, rest in the knowledge that you are valuable to God’s family. Your work may be done anonymously, but you are not anonymous to God.
And that fact introduces a second truth: the Lord remembers every labour done in love. With Him, nothing is ever forgotten.
For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown toward His name, by having served and by still serving the saints. (Hebrews 6:10 NASB)
Tuck Hebrews 6:10 into the back pocket of your mind and every time you begin to feel discouraged because you don’t receive the recognition and affirmation you deserve, remember that God never overlooks a single deed.
The third truth: our rewards will be based on our faithfulness—not public applause. The public may never know of your ministry, but that will have nothing to do with final rewards. God never checks an applause meter to measure the merit of our service or to determine our rewards.
