“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)
God put you on Earth to do a certain work that only you can do. Ephesians 2:10 says that you were “created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (NIV). But God didn’t plan for you to do that work alone. You need people to work with you.
You know the feeling you get when you do too much work on your own. You get exhausted and burned out and discouraged. You might even think about giving up! Why? Because you’re trying to do your work alone, and God never meant for it to be that way.
The Bible says, “Two people are better than one, because they get more done by working together” (Ecclesiastes 4:9 NCV). When you work as a team, you get so much more done. Plus, having good teammates work alongside you is a whole lot more fun and less tiring!
Picture this: Each of us is like a snowflake. On our own, we can’t make a big difference. But when one snowflake sticks with a lot of other snowflakes, they can stop traffic! Like snowflakes, we can make a big difference if we work together, each one of us doing our small part.
Did you know that when we work together here on Earth, we’re actually practicing for eternity? In heaven, we will all have to work, but each of us will have just a small piece of work, so we’ll never get overloaded or tired. No one will carry a heavy burden as each one of us does our small part. All the work will still get done.
Remember as you walk through life that you’re not supposed to do everything on your own. You need other people to walk with you, but you also need people to work alongside you. As you share the burden of your work with fellow Christians, you’ll find that you actually accomplish more for the glory of God.
PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick
Talk It Over
Have you been trying to accomplish too much work on your own? What has been the effect?
How should the church, God’s family, be an example of working together to accomplish more for the glory of God?
In what specific ways do you need others to help you in the work God wants you to do?
This devotional © 2023 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
When you do too much work on your own, you get exhausted and burned out and discouraged. Read more about why God never meant for it to be that way and how to share your load in today’s #DailyHope devotional.
Rick Warren Bio
Rick Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church, one of America’s largest and most influential churches. Pastor Rick is the author of the New York Times bestseller The Purpose Driven Life. His book The Purpose Driven Church was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. Pastor Rick created The PEACE Plan to address the five global giants—spiritual emptiness, self-serving leadership, poverty, disease, and illiteracy—through the power of ordinary people in the local church. His Daily Hope broadcast and daily devotionals are offered around the world. You can listen to the broadcast or sign up for the free devotionals at PastorRick.com.
Tags
40 Days of Community – 2023, Community, God’s Family, Work, Encouragement, Eternity, Heaven, Dependence, Christian Living, Ephesians 2, Ecclesiastes 4
Broadcast Series: 40 Days of Community – 2023
Sermon Series: 40 Days of Community
Sermon: 016201_Why We Need Each Other
