We’ve all been there — tough days, long weeks, counting down ‘till the weekend begins. And while God established rest from work as a time for us to get re-energized, be still in His presence, and function properly, there’s also this mindset that most of us have given ourselves over to at one point or another — the mindset that asks, “Is it Friday yet?!” and has us dreading Monday mornings as soon as we feel the weekend hours drift away.
Last fall, I took some time off from work and went on a long road trip, and reflected on God’s purpose for my work and for my life in general. As I drove through miles of empty fields engaged in deep conversation with my best friend, the thought occurred to me: “No one ever says ‘Thank God it’s Monday!’ or do they? And what if we, as Christians in the marketplace, shifted the way we saw the work week as a partnership with God to restore His Kingdom in our workplaces? Then, we could get excited about Mondays, knowing they’re the beginning of a new opportunity to partner with the Holy Spirit in doing the work He has called us to do!”
But let’s paint a picture of the many reasons Mondays have earned such a bad reputation.
- Your alarm forgot to wake you up and now you’re running behind on everything.
- Your boss just remembered he has a big meeting on Tuesday and needs you to deliver a long list of projects by the end of the day.
- You got a call from your child’s school informing you she’s not feeling well and needs to be picked up right away.
Ahh … the stress of juggling our highly demanding, fast-paced lives.
In Psalm 46:10, God reminds us to “be still and know that [He is] God.” But how many of us try to fix the chaos in our own lives when it comes (and it always does) instead of being still, turning to God, and knowing He’s got the answers?
Every day, we have an opportunity to give our day to God and truly depend on Him instead of doing our work independently of Him. See, He knows every project we will be charged with, every conflict we will have with people, every opportunity He wants us to take to share His love with a hurting world, and He knows exactly how to handle every situation. As Christians, God has called us into partnership with Him as we grow in our relationship with Him. He doesn’t expect us to do life or figure out life (or our work) on our own — that’s why He left us His Holy Spirit!
When we truly begin to shift the way we view our work week, instead of dreading a task or a project, we can look forward to partnering with the Holy Spirit in our job, which is the assignment He’s called us to as believers in the marketplace. Have a big ad campaign to create? Ask the Holy Spirit for creative ideas. Need to figure out a way to tighten your department’s budget? Ask the Holy Spirit for financial ideas. Have a technology glitch you need to fix? Ask the Holy Spirit for guidance on the way to solve it. The Lord delights in giving us wisdom, speaking to us, and partnering with us in the plans He wants to accomplish in the marketplace. We just need to ask.
