You do a good job and expect that others will see your work and appreciate you for it. This is especially true in your service to the Lord. At your secular job, you would like those over you to notice your good work and compliment you for it. But you, also, realize that your superiors may not know Christ, so you understand their lack of appreciation. While at church, those you serve are believers, thus you expect them to appreciate you. You think that they should act biblically and be encouragers.
The way you feel toward others in their relationship to you is the same way you should treat others. Irwin Federman wisely said, “Your job gives you authority. Your behavior earns you respect.” Just as you want others to appreciate you, so you need to appreciate others. An amazing thing happens, in respect to your satisfaction in serving Christ, when you get your attention off of what is in it for you, and focus on serving others with a joyful attitude.
The Holy Bible speaks much of you being a servant of Christ. This means, of course, that you serve with a joyful spirit. To have that attitude, a shift in your thinking must take place. The real key to joyfully being a servant is seen in Romans 12:3, “For through the grace given unto me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allowed to each a measure of faith.” The first step is that you get your focus off how important you are in your service to Christ; in other words, be more humble – “not to think more highly of himself.” Then realize that God gave you a certain ministry, so just be satisfied with that – “a measure of faith.”
Just remember when you think, “I don’t get any respect,” your eyes are on you not the Lord. The remedy to that thinking is to focus on Christ. That is when you begin to feel like you get respect.
