Devotional Service should be Performed with Joy and Sincerity

Hare Krishna Prabhujis and Matajis,
Please accept my humble pranams. All glories to Srila Prabhupada and Srila Gurudev.

Devotional service must be done with sincerity and joy. But are we really doing that? We have these devotees from Mussaffa (a place in Abu Dhabi), who undergo so much of difficulties to maintain their daily life, staying amongst so many materially engrossed people (who mostly are not following the regulative principles), getting up at 2.30 or 3 am everyday to perform the japa, sincerely following the principles. This is not at all an easy task, but then too these devotees even after so much struggle for the whole day, are very eager to do sincere devotional service. They just don't have false ego, which makes them do devotional service with all their heart. Even when they are called to do any service they will be very enthusiastic about going for that service. They are exploited by their employers to such an extent, that when they ask for half day off, they loose their wages for 2 days, but still they often willingly for Krishna, come for the Gaur Purnima or Janmashtami service, cutting down their wages. We have to take a lesson from them as how we should be serving the Lord. These special days just come 2 days a year, still we don't have enough time to devote for the preparation of these celebrations. Seeing their love for Krishna, we should feel pity on us because we are in the comfort zone, still we don't perform devotional service with all the sincerity. The more high parentage, great opulence, high education and bodily beauty we have, the more puffed up we are and the more we are very deterrent to perform service unto the Lord. Devotional service should be performed with joy, we see the pain in above mentioned devotees, but while performing devotional service
they are the most joyful. Seeing their sincere efforts, again and again reminds me of the verse from Kunti devi's Prayers 1.8.26,

janmaiśvarya-śruta-śrībhir edhamāna-madaḥ pumān
naivārhaty abhidhātuṁ vai tvām akiñcana-gocaram

My Lord, Your Lordship can easily be approached, but only by those who are materially exhausted. One who is on the path of [material] progress, trying to improve himself with respectable parentage, great opulence, high education and bodily beauty, cannot approach You with sincere feeling.

As stated in the purport by Srila Prabhupada, "There is a quality to utterances of Lord's holy name. It depends on the quality of feeling. A helpless man can feelingly utter the holy name of the Lord, whereas a man who utters the same holy name in great material satisfaction cannot be so sincere. A materially puffed up person may utter the holy name of the Lord occasionally, but he is incapable of uttering the name in quality."

The principle of life should be to decrease the degree of material intoxication otherwise it leads one to be more and more illusioned about the aim of life.

I pray unto the lotus feet of my spiritual master, to bestow his blessings upon us, so that we relish devotional service and perform it with joy and get rid of hindrances for spiritual advancement.

Thank you very much.
Yours in service of Srila Prabhupada and Srila Gurudeva,
Nayana Priya devi dasi
Abu Dhabi.