A slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. (John 8:35)
2012 was a frustrating year for me because I felt called of God to write, but yet I could not write for the life of me, and I couldn’t figure out why.
Then someone gave me a word from the Lord at the end of October that set me free: “God’s calling upon your life to write is not a call to servanthood, but to friendship. You cannot answer that call from the place of servanthood; you must write from the place of friendship with God.”
So much of what we do comes from the servant-drive within us. We want to serve God, to do his will, to obey his commands, to complete his assignments, and to hear him say, “Well done.” And all of this is good, but it is not very relational. Slaves do all of that for their masters.
The difference between the way a slave serves his master and the way a son serves his father is that sons serve with their fathers, and slaves serve for their masters. There is a level of friendship that transpires between a parent and a child when that child has gained a certain level of kindred mastery over a common task. In approaching that task together, as parent and child, a certain level of friendship is created.
This word from the Lord meant that God was not calling me to do this on my own, but to enter into the writing task from a place of deep fellowship with him. My calling is to see to it that I never write alone. When I feel the stirring of the Spirit in my heart, and when I begin to enjoy the fellowship of his presence, then it is time for me to write . . . as a son, and as a friend.
Everything I do for God will always be an act of service to him. But nothing I do for God will ever again be an act of slavery. I abide in the house forever, because I am a son. This makes all the difference!
Share your thoughts:
Can you discern the difference between serving God as a slave and a son in your own life?
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