When is this job done?

I started serving the Lord in my church when my babies were young. Until then, I thought that pew-warming was my calling. Praise God, He placed an active Christian friend in my life to show me being spoon-fed from a cozy pew had nothing to do with serving the Lord. So, I got off my padded seat and got active. I love how that call to action has changed over the years. I have served as a secretary, a worship team member, a bulletin maker, many different committees member, Sunday school teacher, food bank director, and ladies’ bible study teacher. I would be willing to bet most people have the same story. Much like the seasons of our life change, many times the places we serve also change. Through our lives we will see many seasons come to an end. Your single days will come to an end, your child-raising days will come to an end, your 30’s, your 40's, and your 50's will all end. So then, is our season of service to the Lord ever done? I have in the past heard mature Christians declare that they have put in their time in ministry. Perhaps they have. But that statement has always rubbed me wrong. When is the work you have completed for the Lord enough to cash in for retirement? I have been attending an old-time revival this week about an hour from my house. Under the tent, God’s word is preached by bald-headed cowboy who is moved to tears by his love of the Word. Before the preaching, a man in his 80’s gathers his wife and leads hymns of old. Some hymns are so obscure I don’t even recognize them. But he raises his voice to the Lord, and he means every word he exalts. In his 80’s, with cancer, he isn’t done yet. A couple in the back stands every night at the preacher’s call to be recognized for their work on the morning’s VBS. They nod, humbly, and you can tell they would prefer no recognition at all. Would you guess a couple leading the children’s worship to be a vibrant youthful pair with a passel of toddlers of their own? Not these two. They proudly announce that they are in their 70’s and the Lord isn’t finished using them yet. I have been in awe of this crew of the Lord’s servants. Devotion to the Lord’s work like this, I have rarely seen. So, I try to absorb every piece of wisdom I can from them in the brief moments of our meetings. And the best I can see is that the Lord just isn’t finished using them yet. But the question remains, is He ever done using any one of us? Our command time and time again in the bible is to love one another. Whatever that looks like in your walk, the call is irrevocable. If we are truly loving, we are truly serving, every day until we are no more. So perhaps God did not call you in your retirement to travel around doing tent revivals. But He did call you to love and serve. Every single call on our lives is to Him be the glory, so whatever He has you doing, you should be doing it in such a way that the Lord of your heart is glorified (1Cor 10:31). As long as your feet still touch this earth, and you dance in the rain in this life, your job is to glorify God. That probably means there will be no end to your intended service until you are buried in the grave. Still, we may choose to ignore this call on our lives, packing away the armor of God, rusted and bent. But then, if we are done glorifying God through service, what purpose do we have here? Why are we still here? In your vapor of a life, don’t contemplate at what point you can put your feet up and relax while you are content with a service finished. Contemplate that if you are gifted another tomorrow, in what way will your service glorify God? That shall be your call until you are resting at the feet of Jesus.  1 Peter 4:10 “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms.”