Open for full service

In years gone by there were places called “full service” gas stations. You would pull up in your car and an attendant would hustle out and fill your tank with gas, check your oil, check your tires, and clean your windshield. As you passed these stations often you would see a sign that would read, “Open for service.” That simply meant they were ready to serve your traveling needs.

I want to us to ponder the phrase “Open for service” with a spiritual light shining upon it. Let us ask ourselves, are we open for “full service” to the Lord. So many of us claim to be Christians and say that we are ready to serve the Lord, but truthfully, we are “closed to service.” Let us look at seven things that must be opened if we are to faithfully serve our Lord Jesus Christ.

First, we must have an “Open Bible.” We cannot know what the Lord wants us to do or how He wants us to live if we do not open His blessed Word. The Bible states it plainly as the psalmist wrote, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path (Ps. 119:105 – KJV.) We must open the Bible to read and study it because it can make an eternal difference in our lives as we give our “full service” to the Lord.

Second, we must have “Open Ears” to hear what the Lord wants to say to us through His Word. We also need to hear what he wants us to do so that we can faithfully obey His word. Many times, we are too much like the people that Zechariah described, “But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear” (Zech. 7:11 – KJV). We have chosen not to hear what the Lord wants to say to us in fear that we might either be convicted of sin or that we might have to do something outside our comfort zone. If we are to be in “full service” to the Lord, we must have open ears.

Third, we must have “Open Eyes” to see the opportunities that the Lord gives us to serve Him. Many times, we do not serve the Lord because we don’t take the time to see the needs around us. The problem is that we talk about serving, yet we keep our eyes closed so that we fail to see the lostness of people. The Bible is clear, “Where there is no vision, the people perish” (Prov. 29:18 –KJV). There are people stepping out into eternity without Jesus Christ and our eyes are closed to opportunities to reach them for the Lord. We must open our eyes for full service for the Lord.

Fourth, we must have “Open Lips” to tell others the Good News of Jesus Christ. We can talk about anything and everything until it comes to speaking about the Lord Jesus Christ. Too often we tend to close our lips. It is time we opened our lips of clay and tell others what Jesus has done in our lives. We can gossip, fuss, complain, lie, be bitter and say a host of other things, and yet we will not open our lips and use them for what God intended them to do. We should count it an honor to praise and witness for the Lord. We must have open lips to be in full service to the Lord.

Fifth, we must have “Open Hands” to meet the needs of those around us. We tend to keep our hands clinched tight and never reach out to others. Like the priest and the Levite in the story Jesus told about the Good Samaritan. They were the religious people and yet they had their hands closed because they were too busy doing their “religious rituals” to meet the needs of a fellow man. The Samaritan showed us what it is to have open hands as he picked the man up and took care of all his needs. In this world we are the hands of Jesus, and they must be opened if we are to be in full service for Him.

Sixth, we must have “Open Windows” for prayer to the Lord. We must be like Daniel who went to his house and opened his windows to pray to the Lord. It seems that many times we close our windows until some emergency comes into our lives. Only then do we throw open the windows and talk to the Lord. When we keep those windows of prayer opened, then the Lord can truly speak to us and use us in ways that will bring glory and honor to Him, and then we can be in full service for Him

Lastly, we need to look for “Open Doors” so that we can serve Him. One of the things I find is the Lord opens doors for me but often I fail to recognize them or go through them. We must always be alert for those doors of opportunity and when they open, we must go through them. As we venture through those open doors, we will discover we can make a difference for the Lord and in the lives of others.

Today let us examine ourselves. Are we really open for full service for the Lord?

Rev. Tim Burton is pastor at Flippin Memorial Baptist Church.

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