June 11, 2024

A DESIRE FOR EXCELLENCE

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.

Romans 12:1 NLT

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TODAY’S THOUGHT

We worship God when we use the talents, gifts, and abilities God has given us to accomplish His will through our lives. I find The Message translation of this passage worth thinking over. “Take your everyday, ordinary life - your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life - and place it before God as an offering." (Romans 12:1 MSG)

In our western culture we think about giving God our Sunday mornings as a time to gather for worship with other believers. But Paul suggests that we give God every day. Every day we can worship God by the way we live our lives. 

Our daily work should be an offering of worship to God. There will always be parts of our work that are mundane, and we can often fudge on those parts of our work. But what if we decided to make excellence our mission in everything we do? What if we decide we are going to honor God with our work—even the mundane parts of our work?

If God created me—and I believe He did—then He has put within me certain gifts, talents, and abilities that He wants to use to enhance my world and advance His kingdom. God has work for me to do on this earth that will honor Him and advance His kingdom. This work will also provide food, clothing, and shelter for me and my family. 

We should not look at work as simply a means to make money. Work should be seen as an opportunity to worship God with the talents, gifts, and abilities He has given us. 

When people see our attitude at work, they should see a desire for excellence. They should see that we pay attention to details. They should see in us something that speaks of a higher calling. We are not just working for a paycheck. We are worshipping God with the talents, gifts, and abilities He has given us.

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TODAY’S PRAYER

Holy Spirit please help me to see my work as an opportunity to worship You. May people see You in what I do. Help me to align my work with the talents, gifts, and abilities You have given me. 

“Scroll down to share what you feel God is saying based on today’s reading.”