“Awe of God teaches you that work is the regular place where God calls you to be a good steward of the gifts, opportunities, and abilities he has given you.” – Paul David Tripp, Awe
Work can only be a form of worship when I am in awe of God. When the opposite is true—when I’m in awe of myself or some accomplishment or physical object—worship never occurs. Work is not done for or to God; it’s done to satiate some internal need that is always hungry, always slavering after more.
However, awe of God isn’t always an easy place to get to, nor is it one that’s easy to maintain possession of. It’s like taking the high ground and having to war to keep it. There is no slacking off when it comes to staying in awe of God. I have to establish bulwarks and defenses lest I be caught off guard.
And yet, I so often am. Worries, doubt, distractions, “awe-amnesia” to quote Paul David Tripp…they all creep in. I scan my surroundings and discover I’m stuck in some seemingly god-forsaken valley. I am working to achieve something other than God’s glory. I have misplaced the rhythm of a regular place where I steward the gifts, opportunities, and abilities I have been given, and I no longer know what I’m doing or why or even who I am.
I am hopelessly lost. I don’t know how to take back the ground, so I cry out for help. It’s all I can do. It’s all I should do. When I’ve lost my way, I shouldn’t flail around or try to solve things in my own strength—that’s a continuation of what I’m already doing wrong. I only will get more stuck in the mire and muck and bog of the low ground if I try to fight on my own.
To get free of the valley, I must return to the one who directs my heart, mind, and life. He set me free at the cross, not only in the life to come but also in the here and now. I have been set free! With that freedom, I can live the whole-bodied life that God intended me to live.
I can reclaim the high ground because he is the one who animates me. He is the giver of good gifts, and he has given them to me, not so that I will be held hostage by them, but so that I can use them for his glory. I stand in awe of him in this regular place of work and use my gifts, abilities, and opportunities to love him, praise him, and make his name known.
Image: Pomodoro Entertainment (Creative Commons)