Setting our Minds on the Mission of Heaven - Know Who You Work For!
I want to be honest! I have loved thinking about and meditating on what we are discussing today. It has greatly impacted me to be reminded of this truth. We have been contemplating how to bring Heavenly direction to our Earthly lives, and in the same manner how to keep our minds set on the things Above and NOT on Earthly things! Perhaps this is an incredibly timely word for many of us today, and so I share this with you emphatically: Know who you are working for!! I want to draw our attention to Colossians 3:23 “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters...It is the Lord Christ you are serving!”
It reminds me of a clarifying moment a long time ago, where someone had asked me why I was still working for a particular boss who had mistreated me. I responded without pausing, “Because I don’t Really work for him!” It was one of those strange moments where I was physically speaking, and yet it was really God speaking TO me THROUGH me! I know that sounds weird but it happens frequently, and in fact I think that is how David would preach to his own soul so often!
This moment brought clarity to the age old truth that our Master and our Boss is ultimately our Lord Jesus Christ! He was the One who had called me to work in that job, and it was Him whom I was obeying and serving, not humans. It certainly gives you a powerful Heavenly perspective and brings Heavenly direction to your Earthly duties when you remember who you are actually working for!
I want us to think about this for a moment...what if the Queen of England came to your house and asked YOU to take care of her dogs while she was away? How do you suppose you would care for those dogs? I ask that because I know Exactly how I would take care of them...with the utmost focus and the very best effort I could give. Or what if she asked you to tend to her flower bed until she came back? Again, I know I would work with my whole heart to make sure that flower bed looked the greatest it had ever looked! Now, ask me if I give MY OWN flower bed that much attention! Sadly, I know for sure I don’t give nearly that much effort when I am working for myself or even a family member. You see, knowing who we are working for changes our perspective and our effort!
I heard a pastor once tell the story that in a little community where he used to serve there was an older man who lived there who was known all around the community for having the Shiniest car in the whole town. He washed, polished and vacuumed it daily. It was not a particularly notable car, yet it was absolutely pristine. The pastor once asked the gentleman why he put himself through such pains to keep his car so beautiful, noting that it seemed like an awful lot of work to go through every week, not to mention it was always done without complaining. That man told the pastor, “Everyday I am out on the KING’S business so you better believe my car should shine like the sun!” I just LOVE that!! This is a man who knows who he is working for!
If we think about it, this truth should greatly impact all aspects of our lives! All that we have been given has been given to us by the King to steward! The children we have were given to us by the Lord. They are HIS children...are we parenting them FOR the King? Do we realize that the work we do as parents we are doing for Him? In service to Him. Are we caring for our children in the knowledge and understanding that they belong to the King of Kings? The career or job you have has been given to you by the Lord to steward...are you working day to day with that knowledge? Not only doing your best when a human is watching you, but doing your best at all times because your True Boss is always watching you! The home you have is a gift from God to steward...take care of it well. Yes, even our flower beds have been given to us to steward for our King, how are we tending them?
When we have the mindset that ALL we undertake to do, we are doing for our King, it changes HOW we do it! If you are walking with Christ then wherever you are (whether you’re in a place you like or not) He has placed you there for a purpose! How you live, how you act, how you steward, and how you speak are all done in service to the King. The direction of even our most mundane activities change drastically when we realize who we are doing them for! Know who you work for, and whatever you are doing today, work at it with your Whole Heart...for it is the Lord Christ you are serving!