Level Up Work

J Games

Do you like to play games? I am not talking catfishing, drama, or emotional manipulation but board games.

J Games happens every second Friday from 6:30-8:30 in the student room. No childcare but we are hoping to have a list of teenages that can babysit.

Also following second service we will have a party for Pastor April as she gets ready to start a new adventure.

Work

Colossians 3:17 CSB

And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Colossians 3:22–4:1 CSB

Slaves, obey your human masters in everything. Don’t work only while being watched, as people-pleasers, but work wholeheartedly, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, do it from the heart, as something done for the Lord and not for people, knowing that you will receive the reward of an inheritance from the Lord. You serve the Lord Christ. For the wrongdoer will be paid back for whatever wrong he has done, and there is no favoritism. Masters, deal with your slaves justly and fairly, since you know that you too have a Master in heaven.

The average person works 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week, 2080 hours a year. This does not include the national average of about 27 minutes of travel to work. That is another 234 hours a year. That is 2,314 hours a year for work. This does not include thinking about work or working off the clock.

That is just over a 1/4 of our total time in a year. Factor in that lunch time is at work. It ends up being about 1/3 of our year that is given to work or work related things.

One study found that about 60% of romantic relationships start at work.

Another study I saw said that a majority of friendships or acquaintances are work related. Depending on your field that number can be higher or lower.

Why are we talking about work on a Sunday morning at church? You might thinking, Pastor Mike I spend enough time at work I don’t want to think about it any more than I have to.

Most of our lives either revolve or are highly influenced by our work. So, what we do and how we work is very important.

We can level up our work game. No magic box, no power up, but we can level up.

Correct Focus

Paul tells us here in Colossians that regardless of what we are doing we should be doing it for the Lord. I like the way the King James reads verse 23.

Colossians 3:23 KJV 1900

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

The word heart or heartily is psychē in the Greek and soul or breath. Whatever we do we should be doing it from our soul, with our breath, we should fully give ourselves to it. Not because we have to but because we want to honor God with our work.

This changes the way we work. We stop working as people pleasers looking only for a raise, a promotion, or external validation. There is nothing wrong with a raise or a promotion. There is nothing wrong with having others give you praise, but the praise we should be after needs to come from God. We are looking for Him to say,

Matthew 25:23 CSB

“His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You were faithful over a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Share your master’s joy.’

When we do this everything changes. When we understand that God is the one we are truly working for we can freely give ourselves to any vocation or situation we find ourselves in.

If you are a boss or an owner here today I would ask you to ask yourself if you are the boss you would want. Are you serving the Lord in a way that shows them Christ?

Colossians 4:1 CSB

Masters, deal with your slaves justly and fairly, since you know that you too have a Master in heaven.

A Bad Boss is No Excuse For Sloppy Work

Most of us have had a bad boss. A boss that was ruthless, mean, rude, or inept. It has happened to most people. Maybe you worked for the owner’s son or daughter and they had no business being in change but they were. Maybe you served in the military and your CO was only there because they went to a fancy school. Maybe you have worked in a church and the one in charge was good at presenting a good face but behind the scenes they were completely fake. I want to tell you that I hear you, I feel your pain, I have been there, but

A Bad Boss is no Excuse for sloppy work.

When we give sloppy work, less than our best, or are just lazy because of our bad boss we look bad. We can think, “oh I’ll show them I will just not perform well.” The problems with that are many.

Number one, No one likes passive aggressive people. You only make yourself look bad.

Being passive aggressive at work makes you look bad and nobody will want to be around you. You become the problem.

Number two, you can end up with a bad reference. You might think you are showing them, but if they out last you and you leave you might end up with a bad reference. That will hurt you.

Number three, you are called to be more than that.

Instead, if you have a bad boss you need to remember you have a great boss in heaven. When we focus on working rightly from our soul we find strength to endure because Jesus is our rewarder. He will make the truth come out eventually. It make take some time but eventually the truth will come out. If you want to be vindicated when that happens then remember,

A Bad Boss is no Excuse for sloppy work.

A Bad Job is No Excuse for Sloppy Work

We have all had a bad job. Maybe it started great and then went sideways. Maybe we worked for a company we liked and then it got bought out. Maybe we just needed to pay some bills and took a job because of the pay or benefits whatever it is most of us have had a bad job.

But a Bad Job is No Excuse for Sloppy Work.

You don’t have to like your job to do it well.

In Colossians 3:18-22 Paul is talking to women, men, children, and slaves. He is essentially addressing all groups of people. He is saying

whoever you are, wherever you find yourself, whatever you are doing, do it well. Give it your all for Jesus.

This message was going to slaves too. The lowest of the low in society. Salves could be rowers on a boat or even doctors. Yes doctors who were slaves. They might be more educated than their owners. They might be cleaning the floor and then called on to set a broken bone. Think about demoralizing and demeaning that was. And yet, the Bible says work as if for the Lord. These people were learning that they were included in the promises of God, they were called to be holy and righteous but still working in pits.

By Roman times Slavery was so extensive that in the early Christian period one out of every two people was a slave.

Walter A. Elwell; Barry J. Beitzel

Paul was not advocating for slavery. He was not upholding the wrongs of his day but he was focused on the attitude and actions of the person. True biblical Christianity has never advocated for slavery. The abolition movement that ended slavery in many parts of the world was done by God fearing men and women of the Cross.

The point is that no matter what we do we do it well for Jesus and in Jesus name.

David, was anointed King at age 15 but he did not become king until he was 30. For 15 years he did good work. Sometimes dirty work, sometimes tiring work, sometimes hiding, but he did it well. He was a man after God’s own heart.

You might have a calling on your life to lead. You might be called to preach the Gospel to the nations. You might be called to lead thousands in worship. You might be called to be a CEO of a Fortune 500 company. You might be called to lead the Army or the Nation, but before you can do that you need to learn to work well.

Before David was king he was a shepherd. Before he slayed Goliath, he protected sheep. If you cannot work a bad job well how can you expect to work well in a job you like.

You might need to cry, you might need to weep, but;

A Bad Job is No Excuse for Sloppy Work

You can Change Jobs but you are still you.

You can change your job but you are still who you are. This is why we focus on Jesus and working for Him. We need to want to be changed more than we want the situation or job to change because we are always with us.

Everywhere you go you are still there.

If you have a bad attitude then you have a bad attitude. You need to first fix you. This does not mean the boss is not a problem, it does not mean the job is not an issue. It does not mean the work environment is not hostile but your attitude is on you.

Exodus 3:7 CSB

Then the Lord said, “I have observed the misery of my people in Egypt, and have heard them crying out because of their oppressors. I know about their sufferings,

God heard the cries of His people. He heard their suffering. He saw their tears and saved them.

Now freed from Egypt and being taken care of every turn.

Exodus 16:2 CSB

The entire Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.

We see this story repeat all throughout the Old Testament. God hears the people’s cry for help, He helps them and then they catch an attitude.

We see this story in us if we are honest.

How often do we catch an attitude when we are walking in an answered prayer. God gave us what we asked for but we still have an attitude.

We complain while sitting at the banquet table because we are the problem.

First we fix our eyes on Jesus and then we can worry about the job.

If you are having a hard time at work or in any situation here is Pastor Mike’s two pieces of council.

You can complain twice. Then you either need to deal with it or change something. Go on and cry, feel free to vent but if all you are doing is complaining then nothing will change.

Nothing changes if nothing changes.

Number two, either you can deal with it or you can’t.

It really is that simple 90% of the time. Either you can do it or you can’t. You can bear it or you can’t. Figure that out and then deal with the consequences. Nothing is saying you have to work for that bad company forever. Nothing says you have to stay in that job. Either you can do it or you can’t but pick one.

Maybe you love your job but hate the pay. Either you can do the job for that money or you can’t.

Maybe you love your job but hate the hours. Either the job is worth it or the hours are.

Maybe you once loved your job. It was perfect but so much as changed that you cannot longer bear it. That is ok. If God is not telling you to stay then you are allowed to change your job.

Maybe you thought the job would be good and you changed your mind. That is ok, it does not have to be God “calling you to a new season.” Maybe you just changed your mind. That is ok.

You can change your job but you are still who you are. Make sure you are the person you want to be.

I want to share a story from the Bible on what it looks like to work for the Lord.

Pray and Praise

There is a story in the Book of Acts about Paul and Silas worshipping in prison. If you know the story you probably love, it. I think we love it because one verse is them praising God and Singing and the next verse is the freedom.

Acts 16:25–26 CSB

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the jail were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s chains came loose.

If we would just praise the doors would open. It’s inspiring and liberating. It tells us that everything will be ok, and we will be vindicated.

Here is the thing though. Paul finds himself in jail again. Well again, and again, and again. He has a tendency to get arrested. The last time he gets arrested about 20 years later he continues to pray and praise. He says towards the end in 2 Timothy 4:18 that it will all be ok. He is eventually executed.

2 Timothy 4:18 CSB

The Lord will rescue me from every evil work and will bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever! Amen.

Sometimes we pray and praise and the prison doors fling wide open. Sometimes we pray and praise and we lose our heads. We don’t know which. We don’t pray and praise as a magic formula. We don’t pray and praise to get out of the situation. We do it because we are called to be faithful wherever we find ourselves.

Our job, our real job, is to work well for the Lord and learn to pray and praise regardless of the circumstance.

2 Timothy 4:7–8 CSB

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. There is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me, but to all those who have loved his appearing.

We need to work as if working for the Lord and not people. Everything else in our work life hinges on this:

Do all things for the glory of God.