Cultivating the Spirit of Self-Sacrifice
1 The apostle Paul encouraged his fellow servants to ‘present their bodies as a sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, a sacred service with their power of reason.’ (Rom. 12:1) Paul willingly sacrificed himself and was richly rewarded for his sacred service. When we sacrifice our personal pursuits in behalf of Kingdom interests, we too can be confident of Jehovah’s blessing.—Mal. 3:10; Acts 20:20.
2 Servants of Jehovah have always demonstrated the spirit of self-sacrifice in their lives. Imagine for a moment the sacrifices Noah must have made expending his life’s energies building an ark large enough to preserve himself, his close family and the animals through the flood! And while doing that great work, his self-sacrificing course included service as “a preacher of righteousness.”—2 Pet. 2:5.
3 Consider the personal sacrifice of Abraham. At God’s command Abraham left his home at 75 years of age to become a temporary resident in a foreign land. (Heb. 11:8-10) It is also encouraging to recall the self-sacrificing spirit of men like Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel who had difficult territory assignments. (Ezek. 2:4, 7) Yet all these served unselfishly year after year, confident of Jehovah’s blessing. Likewise today, Jehovah’s servants make adjustments in their lives in order to share as fully as possible in the preaching work, whether in some faraway place or nearby.
4 Since this month begins the new service year, it is a good time to reflect on the fine results from the sacrifices we have made thus far and determine what we hope to accomplish during the 1982 service year. Usually it is helpful to set personal goals. For example, would it be possible for you to auxiliary pioneer one or more months this year? Have you been thinking about entering the regular pioneer service? Perhaps by making the necessary sacrifices, this could soon be possible for you. Or, have you been planning on regularly spending more time in field service? If so, now is the time to put your plans into operation!—Eph. 5:15-17.
WHAT GOOD HAS BEEN ACCOMPLISHED?
5 As you look back on what you individually have accomplished, you should be able to see where good progress has been made. For example, has your knowledge of God’s Word deepened? Are you cultivating your relationship with him by regularly giving thanks to Jehovah, seeking his help in prayer? Are you showing greater appreciation for meetings by your regular attendance and good preparation? Do you comment regularly, thus building up others? Have you been spending more time in field service when your circumstances allow? Or have you in various ways been able to improve the quality of your ministry? If you have been able to accomplish one or more of these things, you have good reason to be happy.
6 We have received some fine experiences from those who have begun to share regularly in the magazine work on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month. The elders in one congregation noted that the first month this arrangement was instituted, the congregation placed over 1,000 magazines, whereas previously they averaged only 550 to 600.
7 One pioneer who did not normally engage in field service on Sunday adjusted her schedule so she could go out the first Sunday of the month. Her very first Sunday she placed two books and started two Bible studies with individuals who worked during the week and could study only on Sunday. Jehovah richly blessed her self-sacrificing effort.
EXPANDED SERVICE
8 Do you recall the fine suggestions in the May 1981 issue of Our Kingdom Service relative to magazine routes? Those who have applied these suggestions have been blessed, as have been those who are regularly receiving the fine message the magazines contain. Truly, the time, effort and any sacrifices involved bring rich rewards!
9 There are other ways we manifest the spirit of self-sacrifice. If we are used to spending only one hour in field activity, would our circumstances allow us to stay out in service an additional half hour or more? There is joy in accomplishment and if we stay in service longer we will meet more interested persons and place more literature. Spending more time in the ministry will also serve to increase our effectiveness in the field. We may also show ourselves to be self-sacrificing by enjoying field service on the world’s holidays, rather than spending the entire day in recreation or other personal activities.
10 In many ways the past service year was outstanding and this was due to Jehovah’s blessing upon the self-sacrificing efforts of his servants. Let us now give careful thought to making further progress in our service to Jehovah during the 1982 service year. May we confidently look to Him for his blessing on our work.