Today will mark one month since I've been working at Purple Trout.
It's really hard to believe, since it only felt like yesterday, that I was still at home, job hunting from my couch.
Guess time flies when you're having fun.
Every day I'm grateful to God for His blessings and the opportunities He's placed before me, but in typical human fashion - and mainly because of the insecurities instilled in me after being let go from my job back in January - I find myself constantly doubting my abilities and the security of my position. I always feel like things are a little too good to be true and that with a *SNAP* everything will disappear.
But no matter what happens...or doesn't happen...I realize that I don't have any control over my job situation, or my life for that matter.
All I can do is trust in God.
And do my part.
Because that's how it works: you do your part and God will do His.
We are expected to do our duty, whether that means being the best employee, employer, teacher, student, parent, sibling, friend, etc., or whatever your current role in life may be...you have to strive to be the best.
That is our duty as Christians: utilizing the gifts, talents, skills and abilities that God has placed in each of us, to the best of our abilities.
Once we do that, God will do His duty: honoring and rewarding our diligence.
Here are a couple of things I've learned from my previous...and present...employment experiences:
- Remember that your boss is God. By honoring your human boss, you honor God, but God is the One who you're working for.
- Everything you do should bring God glory...not your ego, your boss or your company.
- Never put your faith/trust in man: man (including your own self) will ALWAYS fail you; God NEVER fails you.
- Never let money be a priority. Once you let money become important to you, it ruins you...and those around you.
- Remember that none of it: the job, the career, the title, the money, your abilities, etc...NONE of it belongs to you. God has GIVEN you everything. What He gives, He can take away. Jut keep that in mind, when you are reluctant to pay your tithes and hold on to your paycheck.
- Be grateful...for everything: the good, bad and the ugly. God has put you in your current job/career for a reason...understanding and recognizing that will change your attitude.
Below is a devotional that, ironically, I just read yesterday.
Rick Warren outlines five characteristics that all successful - Christian - people should exhibit/strive for.
It's the "work module" that I currently apply, and hope to perfect, in my "strategy" for excelling at my career...and everything else in my life for that matter.
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not for people” (Colossians 3:23 TEV).
During the 2008 Summer Olympics, Michael Phelps gave us an extraordinary display of the pursuit of excellence. But the truth is every athlete in the Olympics pursues excellence as peak performers in their categories of competition.
The Bible identifies five characteristics of people who excel at what they do.
1. People who excel work with enthusiasm. Regardless of whether the job is big or small, give it your best. Great performers give their best effort, no matter the size of the audience: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not for people” (Colossians 3:23 TEV).
2. People who excel sharpen their skills. They never stop developing, growing, learning, and improving: “If your ax is dull and you don’t sharpen it, you have to work harder to use it. It is smarter to plan ahead” (Ecclesiastes 10:10 TEV). It takes more than desire to excel, it takes skill! Remember, you’re never wasting time when you’re sharpening your “ax.”
3. People who excel keep their word. They are reliable. They can be counted on to do what they say they’ll do. So they excel because people of integrity are rare in our society: “Everyone talks about how loyal and faithful he is, but just try to find someone who really is!” (Proverbs 20:6 TEV).
4. People who excel maintain a positive attitude. Even under pressure, or change, or unrealistic demands, they don’t allow themselves to become negative: “Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life . . .” (Philippians 2:14–16 NIV). And remember: “If your boss is angry at you, don’t quit! A quiet spirit can overcome even great mistakes” (Ecclesiastes 10:4 NLT).
5. People who excel do more than is expected. This is a secret that every successful person has discovered. You’ll never excel by only doing what is required. Jesus said, “If someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously” (Matthew 5:40–42 MSG).
The Broadway lyricist Oscar Hammerstein once told the story of seeing the top of the Statue of Liberty from a helicopter. He was impressed because of the incredible detail the artist had sculpted on an area that no one was expected to see. In fact, the Statue of Liberty was completed with no idea that man would someday be able to fly over the statue!
When you’re tempted to cut corners, thinking, “No one will ever know,” remember God is looking down and sees everything you do. Give him your best this week!
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