Greetings,

A Labor Day Thought:

“Whatever you do,
work at it with all your heart,
as working for the Lord,
not for men.”
Colossians 3:23

On Sunday, July 31st Chicago Cubs’ second baseman Ryne Sandburg, a 20th round draft pick was inducted into Baseball’s Hall of Fame. During his acceptance speech Ryne said, "A lot of people say this honor validates my career, but I didn't work hard for validation. I didn't play the game right because I saw a reward at the end of the tunnel. I played it right because that's what you're supposed to do."

On Sunday, July 17th the youth who attended the mission trip to Savannah, GA shared what they had learned. One of the youth shared feelings of frustration his work crew was having early in the week. They were painting a house in 90+ temperatures and humidity and they weren’t receiving any validation for their work. There were no accolades, not even a thank you from the home owner. He talked about how hard it was to continue to work until he spoke with YouthWorks leader Tom.

Tom told them what Ryne Sandburg told the crowd in Cooperstown and what Paul told the believers in Colosse.

“Whatever you do,
work at it with all your heart,
as working for the Lord,
not for men.”

While often we are rewarded when we do what is right, if the reward itself is our motivation, do we cease to do what is right once the reward is attained? Or, what happens when the reward we are expecting doesn't come?

While we all appreciate being rewarded for doing what is right that should not be our motivation for doing it.

Being a believer, a disciple of Jesus means that we work hard and treat people right because it's the right thing to do, not because of a reward we may receive.

If our lives are truly about bringing glory to God, earthly rewards and acknowledgements will be secondary concerns. It's ultimately not about us, but about God.

Mike Metcalf Jr. tells about a time when he was playing college football. Things were going poorly. Decreased playing time and mounting losses could have fueled bitterness, a slack attitude, and a weak work ethic, but he continued to work as hard or harder than his teammates. Many questioned Him why. His answer was

“Whatever you do,
work at it with all your heart,
as working for the Lord,
not for men.”

What is your motivation for working hard in your sport, your job, your church, your family? How do you respond when you aren't rewarded for doing the right thing?

Does your attitude need to change according to the example of Christ?