Diligence; I work hard to accomplish my responsibilities.
1 John 5:3, “This is love for God: to obey his commands.”
Diligence is an admirable quality to have in the work force. Employers love it when their workers are hard-working and striving to better themselves and the business. Many businesses offer incentives like promotion opportunities and bonuses in order to encourage diligence among the employees. As good as it is to be diligent as it relates to your work, it can cause us to not be as diligent with our families and faith.
Your body and mind can only accomplish so much in a day. Each day we must prioritize our tasks in order to get the most important things done. If we are diligent, we will get them all done, from the greatest in importance to the least. I am very guilty of making productivity an idol. Lately, Christ has been challenging me through His Word in Matthew 16:26, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?” What does it matter if we get everything done on our lists of family, home, and work projects, if we neglect our own souls and the souls of our family?
Application: 2019 is a busy time to be a parent. We all feel an unspoken pressure to advance our careers, enroll our children in multiple extracurricular activities, have weekly date nights, and keep a showroom ready home. That is a lot, if not impossible, to accomplish. We must keep our hearts fixed on Christ, and do not allow ourselves to follow the idol of productivity. Keep God as the first priority of your life, and lead your family in that example. With God first in your heart and home, everything else will fall into its proper place.
