Sermon Illustrations

It always pays to serve the Lord. It may not always seem to pay off here, but in eternity, everyone who loves and serves the Lord will spend forever glad that they did. Everyone who did not love and serve the Lord will spend eternity wishing they had.

A missionary couple returned after many years of faithful service in Africa. It so happened there was a very important diplomat also on the same ship. When the ship arrived, this couple stood back and watched as the band played and the people had gathered and there was great applause, with a huge banner that read WELCOME HOME! As the diplomat walked down the gangplank and was whisked off in a lovely limousine, this dear fellow put his arm around his wife and he walked off with her. “Honey,” he said, “it just doesn’t seem right after all of these years that we would have this kind of treatment and here this fellow gets welcomed home that way.” She put her arms around her husband and said to him, “But, honey, we’re not home yet.”

When you get discouraged and are tempted to wonder if it really pays to serve the Lord, remind yourself that we get home, it will be worth it all.