Service, or Chasing after Wind?--May 30, 2016

Gracious God, when we consider what

our hands have done, and the toil

we have spent in doing it,

if it was done to seek human approval--

done to please others for ourselves --

then whatever treasures we have

accumulated are all a vanity,

a chasing after wind.

But what we do in faithful service to

Christ, and for him to others,

can never be in vain.

In your righteousness train us

for your kingdom, that

in faithfulness we

may serve you.

Lectionary Readings

Ps. 57; 145; 85; 47

Eccl. 2:1-15

Gal. 1:1-17

Matt. 13:44-52

       

Selected Verses

Ps. 85:11

Faithfulness will spring up from the ground,
          and righteousness will look down from the sky. 

Eccl. 2:11

Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had spent in doing it, and again, all was vanity and a chasing after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.

Gal. 1:10

Am I now seeking human approval, or God's approval?  Or am I trying to please people?  If I were still pleasing people, I would not be a servant of Christ.

Matt. 13:52

And [Jesus] said to [his disciples], "Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old."