Serve the Lord with gladness

Dear children,

How do you show your love to someone? Often, we show love by giving gifts. At other times, we show love by helping and serving others. For example, because we love our parents, we help them clean the house or do some gardening. Even when it feels difficult, our parents are happiest when we help them. It is even better when we do it with joy and not with complaints, because no parent is pleased when help is given grudgingly.

We should want to serve our parents with joy because they have done so much for us and continue to care for us every day. But how do we show our love to God? One of the best ways is by serving Him. God says in Psalm 100:2: “Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.” This verse teaches us that we should serve God with glad hearts. We can do this because God has loved us and blessed us in many ways. Most importantly, He gave His Son to die for our sins.

Since God has given us so much—far more than anyone else—shouldn’t we serve Him with great joy in our hearts? So let us serve God with gladness.