There are people who are not actually serving God for Himself; they serve only as long as everything goes well. In reality, they are not serving God—they are serving themselves. Not everyone who appears committed in the house of God, regardless of how many souls they are winning, is truly serving Him. Some serve only because of what they hope to get or what they are currently receiving.
I have seen many such instances. Growing up in church, I observed lives wasted because the nature of serving God was misunderstood. To truly serve Him means to abandon yourself. You must see yourself as a lamb—an offering to be burnt. This is the ultimate way to serve: adopt the attitude of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego when they faced the fiery furnace. They told King Nebuchadnezzar: "We know that the God that we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up" (Daniel 3:17-18 SBA).
Serve God with the mindset that He is faithful, not because of your circumstances or personal experiences. Baby testimonies are when you say, "God is good because He has shown up for me. He healed me, He delivered me, He provided for me". Mature faith goes beyond what you have experienced. Your testimony about God must align with His Word, not just with what He has done for you. You should be able to say, even in sickness, suffering, or trials, that God is a miracle-working God. Whether or not He heals, He is your healer. Whether or not He delivers, He is your deliverer. Whether or not He provides, He is your great provider.
Get to the point where your life is a living offering. Selfishness must die. Then you can truly say, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me..." (Galatians 2:20). When you reach this stage, you can serve God with a sacrificial heart, fully committed to His purpose, ready to die for the Gospel if necessary, because your life no longer belongs to you-it belongs to Him.
As Paul said, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service" (Romans 12:1). Serving God then becomes a life of obedience and faith, motivated by love, not by reward or convenience.