This devotion is for everyone, but especially dedicated to the thousands of those who have dedicated their lives to serving Jesus Christ in full-time, part-time (actually, their is no such thing as serving the Lord part-time, its just the salary that is part-time). and voluntary capacities. Have you ever thought (or been tempted to think) that its not worth it to serve the Lord, that somehow the dream that you might have had in your service to Him turns out to be a sour illusion? You've dedicated and sacrificed as much as one possibly can, and then someone makes an insensitive remark about how you are not doing enough, that the job is not getting done, or says some other critical thing. You cannot respond to that as you feel you ought to, because if you do, you are wrong-Always. It doesn't matter if someone misbehaves in a business meeting or says or does something un-Christlike, acts childish or irresponsible. You can't hold people accountable for what they say or what they do or not do, because if you do, it is wasted on them. They get upset and leave and then you are having to explain to others what happened. It doesn't matter if there is a profuse lack of commitment among those you as a pastor or minister are called to serve- but the moment you let down, the moment something goes wrong (usually because someone else didn't follow through or bother to show up) or the moment you begin to demonstrate fatigue its because you didn't have it together , you weren't on top of your game, you were disorganized, or you are not keeping up with your spiritual life because if you were, you wouldn't get so run-down, tired, or discouraged. Am I getting through to you this morning? There's a thousand and one other things that I could name here. I was just sharing with another brother in the Lord this morning about a situation where all of our careful planning for a youth event came crashing down in thirty seconds because the two young men who were our youth coordinators got into a big argument in front of the youth over some young lady they both wanted to date. It was disheartening to see that the youth who were going to attend a "True Love Waits" event did not want to go after that. One young girl got pregnant out of wedlock not long afterward, and had an abortion. Had she gone to the event with the others in her youth group, I doubt this would have happened. Certainly a sad moment in the life of the ministry. These things happen more often than we would like to suppose. The reason is because our adversary and arch-enemy, Satan, does not like the work that we do for Christ and is bent on destroying our effectiveness any way that he can. This is why all of the forces of the world, hell, and Satan will mitigate against a pastor's family, his marriage, his church, even his own self- esteem. I read somewhere that the atricion rate of full-time ministry workers is somewhere about 70 per cent. It is not that they have lost the calling from God or have never been called. Its because the human, worldly and satanic factors have gotten so overwhelming that they have crushed him. The 70 per cent, incidentally, is in America- possibly the most difficult mission field ever to be faced by modern ministry leaders. What do we say about all this? Is it really worthwhile, and should we continue on in the face of such adversity as pastors, ministers, Sunday School teachers and other church workers? I am reminded of the words of the Psalmist in Psalm 126 who said in verses 5-6: "Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy. He who continually goes forth weeping, bearing precious seed for sowing, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing bringing his sheaves with him." This is a promise for all those who have ever been discouraged, disheartened, or dissolusioned in the process of witnessing and serving Jesus Christ. There will be a result, and there will be a harvest. Even if just a little bit, the seed that will be sown must be cultivated by our own tears. It is worthwhile not because man says it worthwhile, but because God says its worthwhile. Its worth it it if you are pastoring a multi-million dollar budget church or one that is wondering how the electric bill is going to be paid. So be encouraged because if you are continually cultivating the seed of the Gospel with your tears, you will reap a harvest- no matter how large or small-to the glory of God. Have a blessed day. Jeff Russell Devotion for Today Friendship Baptist Church, Langenselbold, Germany http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Fields/3695/