work as you are working for the Lord.

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

Have you ever observed a group of children work on something when they know something better is coming up immediately after?  They may be making cards or another craft project.  Yet, they know game time is coming up next.  There seems to be two types of workers.  There are the crew that has the "let's just do this and get done" attitude and they were whipping through construction paper like nobody's business.  After all what they really wanted to do next was far more fun than this craft!  To them simply getting the task completed was most important. 

The other set of students will be working diligently and meticulously, so that each card became a work of art.  For them it is the quality of work that counted. They put heart and soul in, so that the results were the best they could give.

Have you ever noticed this?  This same type of attitude can also be seen in adults.  When you look at your daily life, whether at work or school, with friends or family, where would you place yourself? Is it quality, or simply getting it done that matters most?  I can almost hear many

people saying, "Well, quality of course!" Does your life reflect that?  Think about your interaction with your relationships, whether it is your children or your parents or your spouse.  Maybe it is a relationship with coworkers, clients, or friends.  I often hear that relationships are about quality, not quantity.  That is true but not the best we can give.  What I tell people is that it is the quantity of quality that is in the relationship that counts!

Take a moment and take stock. In the verse above, Paul tells the Colossians and us, what our attitude should be – not one where we can just get by, but an attitude of excellence and worship!  Whatever we do, whenever we do it…we need to remember that we are doing it for the Lord and we  serve the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords – does he not deserve our best?  We are called to excellence not only in our worlds of "work," but in our daily lives as well.

Jim Elliot, a martyred missionary, said this:  "Wherever you are – be all there."  Whatever you are doing at the moment – be 100% there.  Weave excellence into your entire life.  Give full attention to those you are around.  Serve those around you so diligently and with the same attitude of excellence as if you are serving royalty!  Jesus gave His best for us – can we do any less?

Here is the lesson for today:  take an inventory of your attitude toward all of those things in your life that you deem highly important.  Do you need to change your attitude toward them?  Are you serving God with an attitude of excellence in that area?  If not, what can you do to change your attitude and performance in that area?  Also, are you 100% percent there on every conversation and relationship in your life?  Remember, Jesus gave His best for us – can we do any less?

**note that this was based on a Faith@Work devotion given by Leiff Erickson.