Your Work Is Not In Vain!

Your work is not in vain!

So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless. (1 Corinthians 15:58 NLT)

Have you ever felt like your work does not matter? Do you get frustrated when you do not see positive results?

Sometimes it seems like we work and work and pray and pray but nothing is happening. We talk to people about Jesus and share His love enthusiastically and it seems like nothing working.

Let’s take a closer look at this verse and promise!

Part One of 1 Corinthians 15:58: Dear Brothers and Sisters

I love how God uses this verse to encourage all of us! At the very beginning of this verse, he is speaking to all of us, not just preachers and teachers.

All of us who are saved can share the love of Jesus with those around us. It does not matter what job we have, or where we are, we can share the good news of Jesus where we are.

#2 Be Strong and Immovable

Have you ever been on a diet? Most of us have at one time or another tried a diet and when it quit working, we try another. This can be a never-ending cycle for some of us.

Like when trying to follow a diet and not seeing results fast enough, we can easily become frustrated and quit when we do not see results in our prayers. But this verse tells us to “be strong and immovable,” or other versions say to “be steadfast.” 

What does it mean to be strong and immovable or steadfast? According to the dictionary, steadfast is an adjective meaning “resolutely or dutifully firm and unwavering.” 

Think about that for a moment. Are we dutifully firm and unwavering in our faith, in our quiet time, in our prayer life? The Bible tells us in James 5:16 “. . . The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” NIV

#3 Always work enthusiastically for the Lord

God reminds us to keep our priorities in line in Colossians 3:23. “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord and not for people.” NASV 

Whenever you feel like your work is in vain, remember who you are really working for. It doesn’t matter if you are a stay-at-home mom picking up toys for the tenth time today or the President of the United States. 

When we put God first and do our work for Him and commit what we do to prayer, it is NOT in vain! God says so!

#4 Nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless

One thing I have learned over the years is that God is God, and I am not. He is very good at being God. As much as I try to control situations, I am really not good at it. 

You see, we are not able to see the big picture. We can only see the past and this moment and that’s it. But God can see the big picture.

He sees and knows all the moving parts and pieces that we do not. So, when God says that nothing I do for Him is ever useless, then I have to believe it. 

Your mission

God created you in your mother’s womb. “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb.” Psalm 139:13 NIV. 

He has a plan for your life. Jeremiah 29:11 encourage us “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 NIV

Wherever you are in life, whatever season, whatever your job, God has either put you there for a reason or allowed you to be there for a reason. 

Just like with Joseph, in the Old Testament. God allowed his brothers to sell him into slavery so he would be a position to save them later in life. 

We may never know the reason God has called us to what we are doing. But we can know without a doubt that when we commit our way to the Lord, He will direct our paths. “Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you.” Psalm 37:5 NLT

When we work as though we are working for the Lord and not for people, we can be certain that our work is not in vain. God has a plan, and you can trust that His plan is good because He loves you!