Colossians 3 is stalking us! (Part 3)

And finally, the passage(s) from Colossians 3 that originally began to burrow their way (back) into my (Aaron's) consciousness a few weeks ago as I hauled a couple of dripping trash bags out to the dumpster after closing down the coffeehouse one night:

"And WHATEVER you do, whether in word or deed, do it ALL in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him...Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as WORKING FOR THE LORD, NOT FOR MEN, since you know that you WILL receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. IT IS THE LORD CHRIST YOU ARE SERVING." -Colossians 3:17, 23-24 (NIV)

On the surface, this might seem like a pretty easy passage to break down. We're called to work at whatever God has given us for his glory, not our own. And that is a profound way to redeem the otherwise seemingly mundane! Of course there are tasks and challenges every day that I might not bother with for anyone else, save for the powerful motivating factor of "doing it for God."

But even more than that, I've found that it's an incomparable blessing to quietly attack some thankless chore, and to work hard at it...and when it's finished, to silently breathe a prayer that says "for you, Jesus," and get on with my day. How sweet it is to serve!

Not only that, but as my Papa Els says, "God will get even with you. We believe in that!" :)