"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." (Rom. 12:1-2).
We are not to conform to the world's idea of work but rather offer the fruit of our labors as worship to the Lord. As we end this series—“Work as Worship”—I'd like to point out that we should be just as excited about going to work as when leaving it. None of us should be characterized by TGIF—“Thank God it's Friday” or IHM—“I hate Mondays.” That reflects more on the world's opinion of work—a necessary evil that's primarily about earning a living and making one look good in the process. Bottom line, clock-watchers need to be rewired!
Lastly, let me emphasize that all of our work—the pleasant and not-so-pleasant—is an act of worship. We give God our best through efforts enabled ultimately by him.
“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." (Philippians 1:3-6).
Some final questions:
1. How will you do your work as worship this week?
2. How will the way you work tomorrow change as you work for the Lord and not for people?
[To listen to this series of blog posts (as a 45-minute message at Christian Life Church on February 13, 2022), visit this page at my non-profit website or click here for a direct link.]
