"My life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus."
– Paul, Acts 20:24
Do you live under this conviction? I don’t nearly enough. Rare is the day that I am continually aware of what God wants me to do. And to be honest, there are some days when I don’t check in with Jesus enough to get my assignments. I toil and labor… but it’s in vain when it’s not something Jesus has set before me. I play and laze… but it’s shallow and empty if it’s not on God’s list for me. How many work assignments have I missed in my life?! I’m ashamed to find out. How many times have I failed to even know what work God had for me to do?! How many times have I chosen to work for another boss– chasing assignments that weren’t given out by Jesus?! How often have I been inconsiderate to my role as a servant of Jesus Christ?! I’m afraid to know.
I’m struck this morning that much of my dissatisfaction in life comes from not using my life for doing the work Jesus has assigned for me to do. I wonder what would change in my heart if I were to present myself to Jesus ready for work. It would be right for me to check in with him each morning and ask, "What do you want me to do today?"
Hey Paul! Yeah, this is not a question we ask ourselves nearly enough. I’m realizing that I don’t ask this question nearly enough. So I’ve started this last week to say hello to God when I wake up and then asking him “What do you want me to do today?”
I’ve always started with the big question first (What should I do with my life)… but I’m thinking that my heart will be shaped for all of life if I can learn to better focus on what Jesus wants me to do in the small moments too.
I’m not so sure for Paul that this statement was about vocation as in “job”… but vocation as in “calling”.
This is a fairly challenging issue to seriously consider Ken. The more I interact with church-going folks, the more I realize that this is not a question the majority of professing Christians ask each day. Perhaps it is because much of our Christian culture differentiates between that of secular and sacred to the degree that only pastors and church staff are truly doing sacred work, and how could a lowly carpenter or baker or stay-at-home-parent do the work of God on a daily basis. This mindset, or ministry paradigm must change.