Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
We all love validation, don't we? Someone says, "You're doing a great job," and that does something to your heart, makes you think you're an effective worker.
I remember when I first started working, I was a teenager, just got my first job at a coffee shop, and I thought, this is great. In case none of you have worked in coffee before, the spot you want to have is the spot where you make the drinks because you get all of the experience and you get all the conversation. Maybe that's just the extrovert in me talking, but I love the face-to-face time and I remember thinking, if I go right for that position, it's a win.
Something different happened. I actually got put on baking duty and dishwashing. Those are two areas where you are behind the scenes more than you are in front, and initially I was okay with it. I was feeling good, but the longer I sat into that position, I wondered if I would ever get the validation I was hoping for.
A Lesson in the Dishpit
I remember one day, specifically, I was washing dishes and my hands were getting kind of pruny. You know how that is when they're in the water for too long? I was thinking, God, what are we doing here? Why do You have me here? I had been reading through Colossians very recently, and I remembered the Lord reminding me of this Scripture to work willingly at whatever I do, not for the validation of people as much as I want it. I have to do it for Him.
I started processing through that while scrubbing a dish and the thought came, the opinions and perspectives of people will always change. Your position will always change. There will always be a next thing—even when you feel like you’ve arrived at, say, a point in your marriage and you think, yes, this is it, we've made it. Then another goal comes up and you start working for that. Or financially you've just gotten through this mountain of debt and you're celebrating and you think, all right, what's next?
The Never-Ending Cycle of "Next"
All of these "nexts" add up. I think the Lord tells us to stay in step with Him, because all of these "nexts" will never satisfy us. All of the validation we get from the next thing from people will never satisfy us. You might be on the other side of the coin where you're just waiting for it, and you've never gotten it. That's a hard place to be.
But I think that's why Paul tells us in this Scripture to work for the Lord rather than for people. Because when you know the heart of God for you as a person, everything you do matters. It doesn't matter whether you're at the front of the coffee shop slinging espresso to every person who needs some caffeine, or you're at the back of the room washing dishes because you're doing it for Him.
God's Promise for You
Here's a promise that God has for us. That one, He's always with us, but two, He's the one that establishes you in the position you're in for a reason. You're not there by accident. Maybe today, as you're processing with the Lord, what am I doing and how am I doing it? Ask Him, how do You want me to do this for You today? What sort of an impact do You want me to have with the people around me? How can I learn Your heart for me? Right here, right now?
