Gratitude and Generosity at Workნიმუში

How to Work For God in Everything

In the book of Colossians, Paul calls us to a reorientation. “Set your minds on things above, not on the things that are on earth” (Colossians 3:3). This does not mean that prayer is necessarily preferable to painting a house. Christian progress does not consist of thinking less and less about our work and more and more about the world to come. Rather, setting our minds on things above means expressing the priorities of God’s kingdom in the midst of our work.

The contrast in Colossians between heavenly and earthly things is the difference between living by Jesus’s values, or living by the values of the world system that sets itself in opposition to God and his ways.

Paul lists several ungodly values in Colossians. In the workplace, greed, anger, and lying often appear within what would otherwise be legitimate business pursuits.

For example, it is proper and necessary for a business to make a profit or for a nonprofit organization to create added value. But if the desire for profit becomes boundless, compulsive, excessive, and narrowed to the quest for personal gain, then greed has taken hold.

What does it mean to do our work “in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Colossians 3:17)? First, we recognize that we represent Jesus in the workplace. If we are Christ-followers, how we treat others and how diligently and faithfully we do our work reflects on our Lord. How well do our actions fit with who he is?

Working in “Jesus’ name” also implies that we live recognizing that he is our master, our boss, the one to whom we are ultimately accountable. This leads into Paul’s reminder that we work for the Lord and not for human masters. Yes, we most likely have horizontal accountability on the job, but the diligence we bring to our work comes from our recognition that, in the end, God is our judge.

We might begin the day by imagining what our daily goals would be if God were the owner of our workplace. In God’s kingdom, our work and prayer are not two separate activities that need to be balanced, but two aspects of the same activity. When we work in Jesus’ name, we work to accomplish the work God wants accomplished.

How does this apply to your work?