Whatever may be your task, work at it heartily (from the soul), as [something done] for the Lord and not for men. – Colossians 3:23, Amplified Bible (AMP)

Why do you do what you do? In other words, what motivates you to action in the day-to-day hum-drum of life? Does money motivate you? Does praise from others motivate you? How about being considered the best at what you do?

None of these things are wrong in and of themselves. We do need money to live this life. It’s a wonderful feeling to receive praise from others for doing a good job or for being the best there is at a task. But these things should never be the reason why we do what we do. They should be by-products of what we do. If we work solely for money, then greed is fueling our inner fire. If we work for praise, then it is our pride that we are stroking. Instead of letting our lusts drive us, service to God should drive us. As Colossians 3:23, Colossians 3:17, and 1 Corinthians 10:31 all teach us, pursuing God’s glory, not our own, is the right motivation behind our daily behavior.

If greed or pride drives you, then you can bet your bottom dollar that God will someday strip you of the money and of the praise that feeds your fleshly desires. Then, when all of your earthly motivations are gone, you’ll have a choice to make: lament the fact that all you want is no longer yours, or allow the pursuit of God’s glory to be your motivation for living excellently. If you choose the former, plan on being depressed for a long, long time. If you choose the latter, then be prepared to be blessed with heart peace and contentment, no matter what circumstances you find yourself in.