Turning Work into Worship

Colossians 3:23 KJV 1900

23 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;

Ecclesiastes 9:10 KJV 1900

10 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.

Numbers 3:36–37 KJV 1900

36 And under the custody and charge of the sons of Merari shall be the boards of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and the sockets thereof, and all the vessels thereof, and all that serveth thereto, 37 And the pillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords.

God has a purpose for every person

Maybe your service feels as mundane as carrying a few parts for the tabernacle. But it was desperately needed.

I was asked to conduct the funeral for a man who had helped develop the famous Boeing 747 aircraft. After the service, I spoke with the widow and commented on how remarkable it was that her late husband had helped build that marvelous machine. She said, "The truth is, he worked on one little switchbox smaller than a loaf of bread. That's all he worked on for 15 years. But when that 747 lifted off the ground for the first time, it was the happiest day of his life." He worked on one small switchbox for more than a decade. Yet the huge plane couldn't have lifted off without this man's contribution. Often we see only our seemingly small efforts and feel we aren't very important. But when the great Kingdom of God "lifts off," we'll be thrilled to find out that all of our efforts were essential. M. Craig Barnes, pastor of National Presbyterian Church, Washington, D.C., from a sermon delivered at Christianity Today International (9-19-00); submitted by Kevin Miller, Wheaton, Illinois

God has a plan for every purpose

God wants to use you for what he made you for. Often someone’s dreams and visions prepare them for what God has in store for them.

I often think of poor Sis. Charlotte Elmore - what she must have gone through watching her son pretend to be funeral director as a child. We might have been getting them into a counselor or therapist - but God had a plan for Bro. Elmore for his purpose.

God rewards by faithfulness not results

Martin Luther King on Excellence If it falls your lot to be a street sweeper, sweep streets like Michelangelo painted pictures, sweep streets like Beethoven composed music, sweep streets like Shakespeare wrote poetry. Sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will have to pause and say: Here lived a great street sweeper who swept his job well.

You don't have to be a minister of music to turn work into worship. No matter what you do for work, no matter where you do it, or whom you do it with or for, ultimately you work for God. When you do it well, it's good. Imagine how exciting it will feel to wake up tomorrow morning knowing that you get to join God in his work. Imagine how motivating it will be when you remember in the middle of the working day that what you're doing matters to God. Imagine how good it will feel when you punch out at the end of the day, and be able to say to God, "I did it for you, Lord, to the best of my ability."

Bryan Wilkerson is pastor of Grace Chapel in Lexington, Massachusetts.