"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:1-2
You are not in it because of the people (although Christian fellowship can be fun and encouraging). You're not in it for exalting your reputation (as in, "look what I'm doing for the church" and "I have done so much to get this group functioning"). You're not doing it for the money (after all, for many, it's volunteer work). You're not doing it to gain heaven (since we're saved by grace through faith). So ultimately, you're doing it for God--because you love Him and want to serve Him, and he has asked you to love your neighbor (a.k.a. church youth) as yourself. You answer the call to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Him.
When serving God, after all, you may not gain selfish social benefits; you may not have an audience that appreciates your labors; and you may not gain financial riches.
However, you can be a true friend and bless others; you can see, by faith, God and the heavenly world cheering you on; and you do gain treasure, not earthly, but souls saved for eternity in the life to come.
Phases:
"And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." Galatians 6:9
There seems to be phases, at least for me and in some others, that I have observed.
- Great works are done for God, and persecution increases (praise God that it sanctifies us!). Your sermons and Bible studies have power, your passion and goals for ministry are strong, and you impact many people spiritually.
ex. 1 Kings 17 - Elijah's prayers cause even droughts to start and end. He performs miracles and demonstrates God's power to the confused Israelites at Mt. Carmel by causing fire to come down from heaven and calling many to return to true worship. Revival and reformation! - However, after some time, the persecutions, the hardships, and the sufferings seem to press in more and more. Though we had worked so hard for God, we cannot see much fruitful results, and we feel so alone in this sinful, lost world. We may lose the passion that we once had, and we may go though the motions of ministry without the heartfelt zeal of the earlier days.
ex. 1 Kings 19:1-4 - Jezebel seeks to kill Elijah, and the servant to God loses hold upon Him and flees for his life. "But [Elijah] went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers." 1 Kings 19:4 - God understands our weaknesses. We may have been trying to hide "in the cave" for a while. Nevertheless, God plants new seeds in our hearts and feeds us once again with the living bread. Spiritual recharging and renewal of faith begins, and when you are ready, God calls you to work for Him once more. You realize now that you are not alone.
ex. 1 Kings 19:5-18 - God feeds and strengthens Elijah in his distress, and when He is ready, God visits Elijah's hiding place in a isolated cave. "What doest thou here Elijah?... Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus: and when thou comest, anoint Hezael to be king over Syria..." 1 Kings 19:13b, 15 Moreover, the Lord reveals that there are seven thousand others in Israel that had been faithful to God, whom Elijah had not known about (v.18). - More or less, we usually go through a combination of the phases above, perhaps multiple to countless times during our life, but, like Elijah, if we continue to be faithful with the talents God has given us, we look forward to that day when we reach the long-awaited heavenly gates to meet our God.
ex. 2 Kings 2:11 - "And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven."
