Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.
—Colossians 3:23–24 NASB
PEOPLE WILL FREQUENTLY DISAPPOINT US BECAUSE they are imperfect humans. So are we. When we forget about the human nature of those around us, we are setting them up to let us down.
The shirts hanging off the ironing board continued to multiply until Nancy’s husband asked if she might have time to iron one of them that week.
“I haven’t seen my favorite white shirt in about two months,” he said.
Nancy didn’t reply. She was furious with Michael and ironing those shirts ranked last on her To Do list. Since she was working only part-time, she knew that theoretically she should be able to complete more of the housework. But the reality was that she was exhausted. The new baby, the kindergartener, and their three-year-old wore her out during the hours she spent with them, not to mention all the additional responsibilities that fell on her shoulders while her husband traveled two weeks a month.
After she drove her son to kindergarten and played with the three-year-old for half an hour in between nursing their baby girl, she remembered the shirts. I should just take those to the dry cleaner and have them pressed there, she thought. Michael hates their starching, though, and they seem to keep shrinking the shirts, so I guess I’m stuck with this. I hate ironing!
She counted them. Eighteen shirts awaited her attention. The baby was down for her morning nap, and their three-year-old was occupied with Play-Doh, so she had some time. She brought the ironing board into the kitchen where she could see the children and began.
As Nancy undid the buttons on Michael’s burgundy oxford, she smiled. He had worn this a few days ago. It was a good color on him, and she remembered when she first bought it for him. It was a time several years ago when they had gone shopping before a dinner date one rainy Saturday evening. She smiled as she realized he still made it a priority to date her, even ten years into their marriage.
Hanging up that shirt and picking up the next, she realized this shirt needed to be given to Goodwill. She couldn’t believe he had worn it to work! The edges were fraying, the color was a bit faded, and it just looked old. Certainly it was not something a corporate professional should be wearing! She felt a twinge of guilt at taking so long to get the shirts done, and she started to sense God revealing to her how hard her husband worked, how much he missed them when he traveled, and how much he really valued them all.
In the sixty minutes or so it took to iron the eighteen shirts, she sensed the gentle teachings of God illuminating the truth for her. Occasionally a tear would fall onto one of the shirts, only to be steamed out by the hot iron. Finally, they were done, and she hung them all in his closet. She didn’t care if Michael even noticed that the shirts were done. This job, begun in resentment, had evolved into a privilege she completed for God.
Nancy laughed as she discovered she had actually benefited and grown from the encounter with God while ironing. Realization hit that much of the work she had been doing around the house always had an expectation of appreciation attached to it. She had forgotten that she was a key player in the partnership that God created with her and her husband for their family. Whether or not Michael noticed anything she did, she knew today that she was precious and important to God. He had shown her Michael’s motivations for work—to provide for his family because he deeply loved them. She realized she had been selfish and, in prayer, thanked God for his gentle teaching and asked for his help in taking care of her family, particularly Michael. Peace and joy replaced the resentment and anger.
BOTTOM LINE: Do all your work for God, and it will not matter what the people in your life think of your efforts.
SO WHAT ABOUT YOU?
1. Many professional women struggle with resentment concerning household responsibilities. Studies show that even though both partners work, women still feel responsible for household chores. How are you doing in handling all your responsibilities? How are you doing with the resentment issue?
2. Have you ever had an experience like Nancy’s? Describe your experience.
3. What do you sense God teaching you through today’s dare?
4. For whom do you work? Are you constantly expecting human recognition, or are you so close to God that you sense his pleasure in what you do? Explain.
Women who work or have worked outside the home face different challenges in their marriages. The expectation of reward, born out of the receipt of a paycheck and workplace recognition, can transfer to the home life, creating similar expectations that go unfulfilled. Some women who have never worked outside the home also feel this way.
Today, pray, asking God to reveal where your motivations originate and what your expectations are. Ask him for help in doing your work heartily and only for him.
Pray that he will remove your desire for human praise and replace it with a deeper connection to him, such that you sense his pleasure with you, even in the mundane daily aspects of life.