Fill your life with meaningful activities

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Selfcare”

Our Bible verse for today: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.” Colossians 3:23 (NIV)

Our thought for today: “Fill your life with meaningful activities”

This morning, we will continue our thinking from yesterday about how it is that sometimes our jobs can be too small for our spirit. When author Studs Terkel wrote that line he was referring to the fact that most jobs do not add sufficient meaning and fulfillment to our lives and consequently, our spirit is left yearning for something more meaningful. So, what to do? Let me offer you three suggestions that might help:

First, approach your job in the spirit of Colossians 3:23. Your real boss is Jesus and you are doing your job to please Him – as an act of service to Him. Whatever your job is, you can honor the Lord by how you perform it. Christians should always be the best employees in any workplace. Also, you can use your job as a platform for ministry – to bless others in the name of Jesus. Doing this will add great meaning to your work and it will add to your sense of fulfillment.

Second, if don’t like your job, or worse, if it seems oppressive and soul-crushing, then begin preparing yourself for something new and better. There’s an old rule-of-thumb that says, “Decide what you love to do then get someone to pay you for doing it.” I’m fortunate to have a job like that. I love being a pastor, preacher, teacher, and writer. I find my work rewarding, fulfilling, and spiritually rich. My life would be diminished if I couldn’t do this. My wife, Aimee, has a similar situation. She is a licensed clinical therapist in a Christian counseling center. She loves helping people and hopes to continue doing so for many years to come. If you don’t love your work, then find a job that you will love. An excellent resource to help you prayerfully think through this would be Bob Buford’s excellent book, “Halftime: Moving from Success to Significance.” It’s all about making a midlife course correction.

A third option is to stick with your current job – being the best employee you can be and serving the Lord in the process, and then fill the rest of your life with meaningful activities that you find rewarding and fulfilling. There’s a lot to be said for simply earning your living in an honest profession, providing for yourself and your family, and then filling the rest of your life with things like being an exceptional spouse, parent, neighbor, and friend; along with service in church ministry and community organizations and activities like that. All of that adds meaning and significance to your life.

Whether you are a butcher, baker, or candlestick maker; a doctor, a lawyer, or a stay-at-home mom; your life can be filled with many meaningful activities that honor God, bless others, and give you a sense of fulfillment. But what if you are retired and don’t have a job? Tomorrow I will have some thoughts to share with you about making the most of that season of your life too.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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