When things are done with a sense of duty, with dependence on God, faith in His Word, and with love and goodwill to all, ordinary acts become holy unto the Lord. Yet, Scripture warns us that we can become weary in well-doing. The Apostle Paul entreats us in 2 Thessalonians 3 to beware of unreasonable people (verse 2), busy-bodies, and idlers with lots of unproductive time on their hands (verse 11).
“But as for you, brethren, do not become weary in doing good”—2 Thessalonians 3:13 (NKJV). Do not lose what you have already created for the honor of God. Every effort put forward for the glorious cause of Christ, whether in the community, at home, in the local church, or at any church organizational level, if it’s done by faith in God, with pure motives, and a patient spirit, your efforts will be blessed and crowned with success. Remember that the eye of God is on you, His hand is with you, He smiles at you, and His command is over you.
Busy activity is not enough. Satan is as active and earnest as any good angel. But one is an evil brute, and the other a protecting seraph. It would be better that we fall into the category of lifeless matter, such as a stone or piece of dry wood, than to be busy as a stinging reptile or a devouring wild animal. Herein, therefore, lies the difference in the work we do. We are transformed from being merely a doer to a well-doer when we cooperate with Christ in the great and glorious work of salvation. The change is not so much energy as much as direction. When our efforts and motives are pure and anchored in Christ, we are well-doers not just doers.
In this issue of the Gleaner, a report is given regarding the efforts made by Atlantic Union members on behalf of the work in Haiti. We ask that you remember in prayer these efforts for the Haitian people who are still under the ravishing scourge of the latest earthquake to destroy so much of that fragile nation. On behalf of the Atlantic Union and my colleague, Pierre Omeler, Haitian and African ministries vice president and Adventist Community Services director, I wish to thank all contributors to this humanitarian project through your faithful offerings and donations. I encourage you—“Be not weary in well-doing.”
To those who are working faithfully in the New York 2013 (NY13) evangelistic initiative, who faithfully donate to this epochal soul-winning venture, who are helping to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ in New York City by purchasing and distributing the end-time book The Great Hope, I say, “Be not weary in well-doing.”
Because of your sincere service in these and so many other ways, some day very soon, your well-doing will meet with a divine well-done!
Donald G. King is president of the Atlantic Union Conference and chairman of the Atlantic Union College, Inc., Board of Trustees.