Text: Ephesians 6.7
Health and joy in Christian living is rooted in the local church, the body of Christ. When we lift a mat to carry a brother or sister who needs help, we find God’s joy in our family of faith. To experience this joy we’ve got to get in there and take hold of the mat.
Carrying the mat will be hard, complicated, and very inconvenient. But the issue isn’t what’s convenient or comfortable, but being the hands and feet of Christ. Carrying the mat is for his glory, not ours. The joy isn’t in getting a “thank you,” but celebrating God and giving him the credit as we “serve wholeheartedly” (Ephesians 6.7). As “mat carriers” bring people to Jesus, both the carrier and the one carried experience God’s joy.
Today as you lift your hands to God, consider this week’s One Big Question: What joys have you experienced when you lift a brother or sister’s load or are being lifted yourself? As you answer this question, listen to “I Will Be My Brother’s Keeper” by Matt Maher.
