There is joy in serving Jesus

It's a song we love to sing.  

"There is joy in serving Jesus as we travel on life's way..."  Then we get to church where suddenly, we are restricted in our service.

In some churches, you cannot serve if you don't tithe.  In some churches, you cannot serve if you don't go to church-wide visitation/soulwinning programs.  In some churches, you can't serve if your hair isn't the prescribed style or your skirts only go to mid-knee.  Maybe you sing like a hick and slide some notes.

Our service, which we give to a Monarch who is ultimately worthy, gets squashed and boxed until it is no longer a joy to serve.  We begin to mundanely go through the prescribed notions and then our service becomes just as mundane because we have been lawed and regulated to death.

As well, our service is often restricted to church approved programs.  If my pastor hasn't given his consent to my ministry, then it is not ministry.  It cannot be service.

I cannot tell where this idea came from.  I do know that if we limit our compassion to church approved avenues, then we may miss out on great blessings that come from visiting the fatherless and the widows.  There are great blessings that come from those who will never be able to return the favor.