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1 Sam 16:7 NIV
But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."

Serving From the Heart?
Serving the Lord, and by extension serving others, can often be done with a skewed perspective or motivation; i.e., do we serve out of love, or are we motivated by some fleshly reason (such as guilt, obligation, approval, or finances)?

Serving From the Heart
The proper perspective on serving is that it's a pure privilege.  It's nothing less than a privilege, a grace gift, and an opportunity to honor the Lord from the heart.

"What is Compassion?" Blog by Pastor Collins
The greatest friend compassion has is perspective. To keep it, we must remember the unbeliever’s plight. They are lost and confused. Many of them are venomous, and it stings when they bite us. Others are pathetic, worn, downtrodden, clingy. We ought to have compassion on them all. We ought to lace our boots up every morning the way good soldiers do, and march right back into battle.

"What is Compassion?" Blog by Pastor Collins
This sounds like quite a calling, doesn’t it? Well, my friends, it truly is. Beyond that, though, is the fact that it is a divinely bestowed privilege. That’s another part of compassion that fuels us. We mustn’t ever forget where we have come from, how far the Lord has delivered us by grace.

Serving From the Heart
The proper perspective on serving is that it's a pure privilege.  It's nothing less than a privilege, a grace gift, and an opportunity to honor the Lord from the heart.

Warren W. Wiersbe on
2 Sa 6:1-11
David's first attempt failed miserably because the Levites didn't carry the Ark on their shoulders. God had given specific directions through Moses how the tabernacle was to be erected, dismantled, and transported (Num 4), and the major pieces of furniture were to be carried on the shoulders of the Levites who descended from Kohath (vv. 4:9-20).

Warren W. Wiersbe on
2 Sa 6:1-11
The lesson here is obvious: God's work must be done in God's way if it is to have God's blessing. The fact that all the leaders of Israel agreed to use the cart didn't make it right. When it looked like the Ark would fall from the cart, Uzzah presumptuously took hold of it to steady it, and he was killed. But God had warned about this in the Law of Moses, and every Israelite surely knew of it (Num 1:51; 4:15,20).

Warren W. Wiersbe on
2 Sa 6:1-11
The church today needs to heed this reminder and return to the Word of God for an understanding of the will of God. No amount of unity or enthusiasm can compensate for disobedience. When God's work is done in man's way, and we imitate the world instead of obeying the Word, we can never expect the blessing of God.

Warren W. Wiersbe on
2 Sa 6:1-11
The crowds may approve what we do, but what about the approval of God? The way of the world is ultimately the way of death.

It's a Privilege to Serve
Obed-edom, in humility, was simply available to be used by God for His service, whatever was asked of him.

Obed-edom
It's a privilege to serve the Lord, and it appears this man had that perspective.

It's a Privilege to Serve!
Obed-edom's faith was an encouraging example to King David in his moment of weakness.

What a privilege!  
We are made to encourage one another, even by each other's faith. Rom 1:12

The Need For Encouragement
EVERY man, EVERY believer, has times of doubting and weakness… because EVERY man is tempted and taunted by his sin nature, for starters.

It's a Privilege to Serve!
Obed-edom's faith was an encouraging example to King David in his moment of weakness.

What a privilege!  
We are made to encourage one another, even by each other's faith. Rom 1:12

Fixing Our Skewed Perspective
At first, David was angry with the Lord for killing Uzzah, but as usual when we take time and pray about things that we don't understand, the Lord shows us our error. 1Chr 15:1-3,13

Obed-edom's Blessings Continue
In 1Chr 15:18-24, he is appointed as a Gatekeeper of the Ark, as well as being privileged to play instruments of celebration to the Lord.