“Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.” – Ecclesiastes 9:10
Many years ago, I was asked to help on a church project. The foreman showed us how to mask off the window frames and certain other parts of the exterior of the building so the stucco would not get on the wood when it was being applied.
Eager to help, I went to work and did my part to apply the masking tape. After the job was completed, I remember the foreman taking the time to ask me to come and look at a window that I had masked off rather hurriedly. As he showed me the frame, it was obvious that I had left a part of the wood exposed. The stucco had dried on the wood and to this day, forty-five years later, I can still go to that wooden window frame and relive the experience. From that day forward, I realized that it really did matter how the tape was applied.
Over the years, I have had the privilege to work with many experienced craftsmen, and they all had the same thing to say about work: If a job is worth doing, it is worth doing right. The focus verse contains the same principle—whatever we do, we ought to do our best at it.
This is sound advice for the workplace, relationships, personal education, and every other ambition we might have. Yet perhaps one of the best areas to apply this bit of wisdom is in our spiritual lives. When it comes to our walk with the Lord, it is important that we take the time to do it right, and it does take time to do it right. “Hurry” is the death of prayer. It is the ruination of serious Bible study. Never will a series of snapshot prayers replace waiting on the Lord. Nor can jamming a finger into the edge of our Bibles and hoping for a special verse take the place of an orderly study of the Holy Scriptures. The amount of effort we put into our relationship with the Lord will be directly reflected in our spiritual growth and service to God. It really does matter how we do it.
We only get one chance at today. Whatever tasks lie ahead of you, you will not regret having done them “with thy might.”