God’s Call to Work Hard | Will Butler

Men's Leadership Network Podcast

No matter what you do in life, whether you're a businessman, a teacher, a dad, a CEO, or another role, God has called us to work in all things to the very best of our ability. That's what Will Butler, our guest on today's podcast, learned from a young age and what he takes into life each and every day.

Though he began his career in the corporate world, several opportunities that, at the time, were fairly risky crossed his path, and Will ended up making the move to become an entrepreneur and business owner. Now, as the owner of several businesses in the Nashville area, including Mojos Tacos, Five Daughters Bakery, and Burger Up, as well as a Commercial Real Estate Entrepreneur and Wealth Advisor at TBH Global in Franklin, TN, Will still makes it a priority to keep his faith first, his family second, and his work third. And, when it does come to work, he firmly believes that its our duty as Christ-followers to give our very best to all that we do.

You'll hear it over and over again from Will in this month's podcast. Work hard. That's your job. Work hard. God will work through your work.

We can find ourselves falling into a routine. We answer the emails, go to the meeting, scarf down lunch still swallowing on our way to the next meeting, carve out some time to get that proposal done, then jump to the next thing until it's time to go home. Just to wake up, rinse, and repeat.

It's our nature to slip into routine. We can so easily be lulled to sleep in our everyday lives, but that's not how Christ called us to work.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters... (Colossians 3:23) You've heard it before. We're not meant to coast through our work and cash our check (excuse the outdated reference). As a man, you're called to pour yourself out daily to the fullest extent.

Take a moment to dissect a key part of the verse. It says "work at it." That's it. No qualifiers, no wiggle room, no room for excuses. It doesn't say when you feel like working at it, it doesn't say when you want to work at it, or even when you're having a good day, work at it. God tells us to work at it. Plain and simple. All the time work at it.

Secondly and just as important, it says "with all your heart." You may have convinced yourself if you just do the thing, then you've submitted yourself fully to the command. But you haven't. God's not just concerned if you're working at it, He wants you to give of yourself entirely. Translation: you should be exhausted at the end of the day. You should be proud of the work and effort you put in each day. You should want to sign your name on the day and say, "Yeah, I did that today." You're working to bring honor to God in your day job. Whether it's behind a computer or out in the field, God is concerned with your effort level because He has you exactly where He wants you in His plans, and it's up to you to stay fully engaged with His work. Which is ours.

So, take the time to listen to Will Butler's podcast today, then sit down and think through a couple of these questions:

1. Did you give "all your heart" to your work yesterday? If you did, how do you know? If you didn't, why not?
2. If you could redo yesterday, what would you change? Apply that change to today.
3. If you gave all your heart to your work every day for a year, what would life look like at the end of that year?
4. When was the last time you asked God to supply you with the energy and discernment for the day?