By: Jiloml
“Year after year, this man went up from his town to worship and sacrifice to the Lord Almighty at Shiloh, where Hophni and Phinehas were priests of the Lord."(NIV) 1 Samuel 1: 3
Bible reading: 1 Samuel 2: 12-17, Genesis 39
Why do we go to church all the time? Do we do that because we love the Lord or simply because it is a duty? If we do it because we love God like we say all the time, then why do we stop going to church when someone offends us? It is true that sometimes the people around us can hurt us but is there any excuse for our actions and inactions?
There are times when those called to lead us spiritually fail to do their work consciously or unconsciously. But whatever reason they have for doing what they did, we don’t need to stop being faithful to God.
Elkanah was a very faithful man to God. Despite the attitude of the priests in the temple of God, it never stopped him from truly worshipping God. As a result of his faithfulness in the things of God, God rewarded him and opened the womb of his beloved wife Hannah. Elkanah was productive in the worship of God and he saved her wife’s womb.
What are we doing as effective Christians in the salvation of the people around us? What makes us productive Christians is our soul winning attitude. At church do we seek the welfare of others? Are we aware of the discouragement our attitudes bring to others? It is true others may hurt us, but we must never seek to hurt others or cause them to fall from the grace of God. Our faithfulness in God and our desire to save others is what brands us as effective Christians and leads us to being productive in the Lord. For outside these qualities we have no excuse!
One person’s failure should never become another’s excuse. Others may prove untrue but Jesus never fails.
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