Nancy Hughes devotion: The best that you can be

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” Colossians 3:23-24 (NIV)

My husband never could sing on key. Not. One. Single. Note. It wasn’t that he didn’t try. My goodness, he tried and tried and tried. But it never happened.

The sad part to me was that he never knew if he was on or off key. His only clue would be the reaction of people around him when he sang.

For example, people in the row in front of us at church would turn around and stare during worship. He would see them frowning, lean over to me and whisper “Way off?” to which I would always, quietly respond “Yes. Yes you are. Totally.”

But that never seemed to keep him from singing and singing loudly.

I felt so badly for him that I convinced our family to start a new tradition: singing “happy birthday” as off key as possible. I thought it would make him happy to “blend in” with the crowd. But I was wrong.

“Why did you change the way we sing happy birthday?” my husband asked me. In my mind I thought “Are you nuts? I did it because you sing so badly!” but I responded “I thought you might like to sing it differently for a change.”

He smiled. “I know why you did it. You think I feel out of place with my singing and you don’t want me to feel bad, right?” I nodded as he went on. “Honestly, honey, it doesn’t bother me at all!” Enter my “seriously?” face.

But he continued. “This is the way I look at it. God made songbirds and He made crows. I just happen to be a crow. And I decided a long time ago that I would be the best crow I could be.”

What a lesson for me! My husband didn’t complain about being a crow. He never asked God to change him to a songbird. He didn’t even question his plight in life of always singing off key.

He simply worked his hardest to be the best crow that God created. And he praised the Lord in his best crow voice every time he sang.

My husband had learned an important lesson from Colossians 3:23-24. “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” That’s a lesson I need to learn as well.

How about you? What has God gifted you with? The voice of a songbird or that of a crow? In other words, what are you doing with what you have been given by the Creator?

Not everyone is an opera singer. Some may be a grand ole opry singer. Some people hand out fast food at work and others work at eating fast food. Is one better than the other? More loved by God?

Absolutely not! No matter what I am and what I do, I long to be the best at it and to work at it because I truly am working for the Lord who loves me just the way I am.

. Are you a songbird? Great! Are you a crow? Super! All that God asks you to do is to work at being the best “you” that you can be!

Father, you tell me that I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Thank you for creating me to live for you. I pray I will serve you with my whole heart. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

R.A.P. it up

Reflect

·        Have you ever thought that you needed to be the same as everyone else in order to be loved by God?

Application

·        In your journal, write this at the top of your page “God has created me to be.” Under that write down all that you are: truck driver, nurse, mother, custodian, teacher, wife.

·        Begin each morning by asking the Lord to help you work hard to be the best that you can be. He is faithful.

Power Verses

·        Colossians 3:23-24 (NIV) “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

·        Ephesians 2:10 (NIV) “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

·        Isaiah 64:8 (NIV) “Yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.”

·        Colossians 3:17 (NIV) “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

·        I Corinthians 10:31 (NIV) “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”  

I would love to read your comments below! Are you the best songbird or crow you can be?

(For more of Nancy Hughes writing and information about her books, check out her blog, Encouragement from the War Room. An Amazon link to her book, Healing for the Heart is featured below.)