There’s Beauty in Work

As we are coming down to the end of the week, most are ready to divorce themselves from the idea of and the word work. Looking forward to the weekend ahead, attaching oneself to the daily grind is the last thing on the mind.

But today I want to encourage you just in case the daily grind has been grinding too hard, and you may feel a little discouraged – there is beauty in the work that you do. Your labor, assignments, business, and service you do for others matters and is to be respected.

Now, before you take a weary second glance at the words beauty and work coming together as one in the title, I want you to consider a few things that make work beautiful. But before we get to that, I want to reassure you that work is something many struggle with daily. Even the most stout-hearted and dedicated individuals will have times when they must muster up their willpower and grudgingly, get on with their day.

Work is honorable. In the very beginning, when God created Adam, one of the first things He did was give Adam jobs to do such as grounds to till and animals to name (Genesis 2:15, 19, 20).

Our Heavenly Father is a worker, and He has never promoted laziness or idleness amongst His children (see Proverbs 6:6, 9-11; 2 Thessalonians 3:10, and many more).

He is a very on-purpose God, and I believe being made in His image that we are people of purpose. We each have tasks that we can do and, in their doing, we can bring glory to our Heavenly Father (Colossians 3:23, 24).

Work produces. One of my favorite things to watch on streaming devices is videos about modern homesteading. And if I have learned anything from them it is this, if you are going to venture into this lifestyle, to have any sort of farm or productive garden and the like, it is going to take work, and lots of it.

But at the end of it all, my friends, there is a harvest. And it is only through the effort one puts into what they do that will allow them to see a reward in the end.

Your work doesn’t have to involve farmwork to reap a harvest of produce. Production comes from the efforts of any work be it at home with the kids, behind a desk in the office, in the operating room, walking the police beat, or any of the multitudes of services of employment offered through and to people.

Whatever and wherever your place of employment finds you, you will produce a result from what you put into a job well done.

And when that job is well done, it brings not only productivity and harvests, but it brings its own measure of satisfaction.

Two of my favorite times of the day are in the morning when the day is still new and there’s nothing but possibilities ahead. And then there is the tucking in at night when the jobs of the day are done. It is with great satisfaction that I put the day to rest knowing that I did my best, knowing that none of my work is in vain.

Work is not an ugly word. It is very beautiful and what comes at the end of it, no matter what form it takes, is very beautiful as well.

“Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.” Ecclesiastes 9:10

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Head on over to “You Have to Work It!” for another encouraging read and be blessed.

The Power of Acting

How any dreams have been put off, never to be revisited again? Today, we ACT against that.

Procrastination and complacency are a deadly plague in our society. Theirs are the ruin of many dreams. The dasher of many hopes. But what a feeling to step forward and act! Putting steps behind ones thoughts and movement behind ones ideas is a beautiful process filled with power because those steps and movements, in even the tiniest form, will help you to arrive at a place you may never have dreamed of before.

The Bible encourages our actions by telling us, “The hand of the diligent shall bear rule: but the slothful shall be under tribute” (Proverbs 12:24). When one is diligent, they are going toward something. Yes, it may exert more energy then you are used to. And yes, all the answers may not be before you, but forward you must go. The dream inside demands nothing less. The hope that burns within says regardless of what you currently see, this is possible.

But, my friend, diligence is the key word. With the absensce of it, nothing will ever happen. Proper actions in wisdom will lie dormant, and dreams and purposes will remain unfulfilled.

More lies in your future, but fear, uncertainty, and inaction can stand as a wall before you. But diligence and action will look at that wall and know there is more on the other side. Persistent effort says I am not afraid of the hard work it may take to get there. 

Text Free Image by Pexels from Pixabay

Devotion Comes First | The Position of Faithfulness

“His lord said unto him, well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord,” Matthew 25:21

There is something to be said about a job well done.  That oh-so-satisfying feeling when one has worked hard to see the fruition of a purpose being fulfilled and then steps back and announces, “Ah, it was hard but well worth it.”  One of my pet peeves is asking someone to perform a task for me and the job ends up only halfway done, with half-way effort.  It’s a very frustrating experience because I could have just done the job myself the right way but that defeats the purpose of delegating a duty in the first place. 

With that realization, I wonder how God must feel about the duties He has delegated to us?  In our daily walk have we dealt with our Christianity with that same half-way done effort or have we really gone for the gusto?  Have we really expressed ourselves as being faithful, manifesting all God is or has done in our lives?

Through that short stint of questioning the reality of it all hits me.  No!  The truth is, many of us are like the seed in the parable of the sower.  The cares of this world have encroached upon us, choking the spiritual vitality right out of us, leaving us with only half-hearted energy to do a halfway job for God.  Each of our lives is destined with purpose.  Each has been endowed with something wonderful and unique to contribute to this world.  God has chosen us to stand as ambassadors, to show this lost world how to be found and how to live in this world while having a flourishing relationship with Him.  Unfortunately, that cannot be accomplished if we are not as diligent in the care of the work of the Lord as He is to us. 

How will that great thing God put in you ever develop as an outgrowth of your faith if you are not faithful to it; if you are not faithful to Him?  For if one is faithful to Him, then are they faithful to all He has instilled in them.  How many wouldn’t like to hear, “Well done,” coming from the mouth of our Lord? Sometimes we work hard in this life, doing all we know how to do to stay above water, then after all the heartache, sweat, and tears, a voice speaks and confirms that it was not in vain.  “Well done.”

In order to receive that proclamation of good work, one has to be faithful.  The word “faithful” was used twice in this one verse alone.  First, it described the servant.  Then it was used again to describe his work ethic.  The servant was one who the master could count on because of his character, and also because of the way he handled the affairs of business.  Does that word describe us in either or both of those ways?  One without the other just won’t do.  James 2:17 tells us, “Even so faith, if it has not works, is dead, being alone.”  What goes on on the inside of the believer should show up on the outside.  There should be some type of manifestation branching out of our faithfulness.  

Everyone in Christ is called to a life of devotion to God, giving Him priority, as characterized by faithfulness, and having that reach out in our daily affairs.   We are called to be that reliable, trustworthy person whom God doesn’t mind acknowledging as, “Well done,” and handing him or her more talents to care for. 

A life of faithfulness will get you there.  Take God off the back burner of your life and give Him precedence over all.  Rewards will come, but devotion comes first.  The harvest will come but only after the seeds have been planted.  The position of fulfilling purpose and accomplishing good works will always start with a position of faithfulness. 

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