SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL SERVICE

 

For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel. Ezra 7:10

What makes a successful athlete, businessman, or musician?  There are many contributing factors, but a chief characteristic is the successful man or woman has clear objectives and consuming commitment to reach those goals.  That it true of spiritual success stories, also.  The Apostle Paul underscored that in Philippians 3:13-14, “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”  The Old Testament prototype we will examine today is a man named Ezra.

The first secret of successful service modeled by this man is to DESIRE THE WISDOM OF GOD: “For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the LORD….”  The writer of Proverbs extols the virtue and value of God’s wisdom.  When young Solomon might have chosen anything from God’s treasure chest, the young king chose the riches of Divine wisdom.  That was the channel through which God’s blessing flowed into his life, and through him into his reign.  Ezra was gripped with the same passion for the treasure of truth.  The wisdom of God is found in the Word of God.  Successful servants of God, are diligent students of Scripture.  “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”  (2 Tim.2:15)  Have your prepared your heart to seek God’s wisdom in His word like Ezra?

The second secret of successful service seen in this scribe is to DO THE WILL OF GOD: “For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the LORD, and to do it….”  James enjoins us to, “be doers of the word, and not hearers only” (1:22).  This implies that we can:

• Find the Will of God.  God has fashioned us for His purposes, and furnished us with His gifts.  He wants us to discover His design to make an eternal difference.
• Follow the Will of God.  God never calls us to a task unless He also supplies the tools.  God never fails to provide.  Daily decisions determine destiny!
• Finish the Will of God.  This is a spiritual legacy.  Some leave behind footprints in sand, washed away by the tides of time, while others set their steps in cement, and mark out a path for others to follow to the finish.

The third secret of successful service exemplified by Ezra is to DECLARE THE WORD OF GOD:  “For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel.”  Spiritual success stories are written in the hearts and minds of those shaped by the influence and instruction of the servant of God.  The baton of truth is carried faithfully by the man or woman in their leg of life’s race, but then is transferred to others, who then will do the same.  This is discipleship, and is the indispensable mission of the church, and the indisputable mark of a successful servant.  That’s what I’m trying to do today, and what I pray you will seize and relay on to another—and we will celebrate together in victory in glory!