Issue 2001 #1
Diamonds to Receive:
The Joy of Service
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Joy In Service
Most of us have known and often sung the chorus "There is Joy in Serving Jesus"
and we have possibly discovered how it is set forth in Paul's letter to
his beloved church at Philippi. Joy is not the theme of that book but how it
relates to Christian service is made very clear. It is not an objective but a
consequence. As an objective it becomes an illusive will-o'-the-wisp, always
tantalizingly dancing beyond our finger tips. As a consequence or result it is
sure to be the experience of all who have the mind of Christ and "look out
not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others."
Phil. 2:4. I found this beautifully shown in the life of George W. Elliott,
the founder of WTM.
It was in a summer of the early thirties that Ed Erickson and I were having
an evangelistic campaign in what was the Mennonite Bible School in Dalmeny,
Saskatchewan. On Saturday evening we went to the next town, Langham, and had a
street meeting. The Parschauers were there. I heard the Gospel for the first
time. The next morning I accepted Christ in the Brethren Church which was six
miles north of Dalmeny at that time.
Standing at the edge of that crowd that Saturday night was a little man intently
listening - obviously a well-dressed business man. He stayed behind and
suggested that we come to Langham. We obtained a large tent and because he was
on the town council he obtained the town hall chairs and moved in their
family's piano. That man was George W. Elliott. The next summer when we
visited him in his business office he was mailing out Gospel tracts and
getting local young people to help. After each time I stopped in, his office
shelves had less business material and more Gospel literature and mailing files.
Eventually, I found he had moved to Saskatoon and had started WTM. He was
having the time of his life directing a systematic mailing of Gospel tracts.
He has now, long since moved on to his Heavenly home and if earth's choruses
are included in Heaven's collections, I have no doubt he is still singing,
"There was JOY in serving Jesus."
- Herbert W. Peeler
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