Once as I sat on a 737 getting ready to leave the gate at
the airport, my window seat looked directly down at the luggage loading area. A
large tractor had pulled the string of carts up to a long conveyor belt that
ran into the belly of the plane. A worker (I will call him “Larry the luggage
guy”) stood with a scanner in his hand. As his “helper luggage guy” placed each
piece of luggage on the belt that was slowly moving into the plane, “Larry”
electronically scanned the tag that had been placed on the suitcase at
check-in.
Wow, I thought. What
a great way to keep track of our bags. A
bag is placed on the belt, scanned and moves up the conveyor. Next bag …
scanned … up the conveyor. Bag after bag. Someone had actually created a
marvelous system to prevent “lost” luggage (the airlines will always tell you
it is not
lost; they just do not know exactly where it is).
Suddenly, someone else standing at another vehicle hollered
for “Larry.” He was laughing about something. Larry laid his scanner down and walked over to Mr. Comedian. “Helper” guy seemed
to not even notice. He just continued to dutifully place the bags on the belt
that was still moving into the
plane. Bag after bag was moving up the conveyer belt, but NOT being scanned.
Several minutes later, “Larry” walked back over, picked up
the scanner, and started back in like nothing had happened. Only now, about
every third bag, he would turn around to his not so funny friend and laugh again—and miss a bag.
While I was stunned at the “I couldn’t care less” attitude
shown by “Larry,” at least now I knew why several years ago, my wife and I
landed in Aruba at precisely the same time that our suitcase landed in Detroit.
“Larry the luggage guy” must have been on duty that day.
The wisest man who ever lived, Solomon, instructed us in
Ecclesiastes 9:10, “Whatever
your hand finds to do, do it with
all your might” (NIV,
emphasis added). In Colossians chapter 3, the great apostle Paul admonishes
believers: “Whatever you do, do your work heartily,
as for the Lord rather than for men … It is the
Lord Christ whom you serve” (vv. 23-24,
NASB, emphasis added). Now, there is a work ethic that should be posted in
every work place in America. You are working not for a boss, but for
the Lord Jesus Christ.
What would happen if everything we did—every day—we did as if Jesus was standing there, and He was the one who had given us a task to perform?
Would we approach the job differently? Would we be watching the clock so we
could “punch out,” or count the days with a TGIF attitude? Probably not.
A few years ago I was with the best-selling author Andy Andrews,
who said, “I believe that everything we
do matters.” Check out that attitude. No matter what you are doing every day,
it matters. No job is “moderately” important.
For those of us who call ourselves Christians, every minute of every day should be lived with the
mental concept that everything we do matters to Him, and we are simply living every day to please Him.
We should realize that all of our positions—whether leadership, staff or even
the janitor—make a difference in the kingdom of God.
This week as you journey in your Christ walk, determine to
have a new attitude. Have a “can-do” attitude. Have an “I work for Jesus”
attitude. Decide that you will not do your job to just “get by” and receive a
paycheck. Work as if it matters—because it does. Work as if you are
important—because you are. Work as if Jesus was standing and watching—because
He is.
If you can develop this mental thought pattern, you can
“whistle while you work.” Your job will never be drudgery. The days will fly
by. Your soul will be light. You will have a smile on your face. Your heart
will have a song in it. And what you do, while you may not see it, will matter
to Him—and ultimately to the kingdom of
God. I promise.
PRAYER POWER FOR THE WEEK OF 4/16/2012
This week as you approach His throne of grace, begin by
thanking Him for Who He is and for giving you both natural and spiritual life.
Recognize that you belong to Him by creation and redemption and verbally
express your love and gratitude for every breath you take and every opportunity
to serve Him—whether in the workplace, home, church, school or community.
Continue to remember Israel, the Middle East and the persecuted church this
week. Pray for unity in the Body of Christ that we may be one as Jesus prayed
and usher in revival across our nation. Pray for the upcoming elections and ask the Lord to show you
how He wants you to serve Him and use you as an instrument of love that
transcends race, gender and cultural differences. Col. 3:23-24
To enrich your prayer
life and learn how to strategically pray with power by using appropriate
scriptures, we recommend the following sources by Apostle John Eckhardt: Prayers that Rout Demons, Prayers that Bring Healing, Prayers that Release Heaven on Earth and Prayers that Break
Curses. To order any or all of these click here.
James Lasher 
Abby Trivett 
