14 Days of Praise & PositivitySample

Do Everything from the Heart

Whatever you do, do it from the heart, as something done for the Lord and not for people. COLOSSIANS 3:23 CSB

I’ve had a lot of cool jobs over the years. I’ve been everything from an ice cream truck driver to a youth soccer referee; I’ve worked for a Stanley Cup championship team in the NHL and at two of the most beautiful college campuses on earth. Even if I didn’t love the task at hand, I tried to find joy in my jobs and take pride in my work. The version of Colossians 3:23 that I had always known reminded me to work as if I were working for the Lord. I like that motivation to have a greater purpose, but since I enjoyed going to work most days, I couldn’t always see how that verse fit into my life. But then my friend Lauren shared with me this CSB version, which says, “Whatever you do, do it from the heart.” Not just work—WHATEVER you do. Now you’re speaking to me right where I needed to hear it. At home, when I’m faced with endless piles of laundry or a sink full of dirty dishes—I do it from the heart.

In friendship, when you receive the Meal Train invite (and you’re too busy to feed your family anything but drive-through chicken nuggets)—order takeout from the heart. In your marriage, when you need to show up and love your spouse when it’s not their best day—forgive from your heart and decide you would rather be happy than be right. In motherhood, when you’re battling yet another toddler tantrum or a teenager who thinks he’s got “the tiger by the tail” (as my mom loved to say)—patiently love from the heart. When I choose to look at life through this lens, I am downright delighted to cook, forgive, or be patient because I would do anything for the Lord—even the dirty dishes.