SECULAR OR SACRED?

Are You Bored?

Slaves, obey your human masters with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ. Don’t work only while being watched, in order to please men, but as slaves of Christ, do God’s will from your heart. Serve with a good attitude, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that whatever good each one does, slave or free, he will receive this back from the Lord. And masters, treat your slaves the same way, without threatening them, because you know that both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with Him.  Ephesians 6:5-9 (HCSB)

Have you ever noticed how quick boredom sets in today? It may come from having too many choices or being convinced that we should live life our way. Whatever the reason, our world is sorely in need of people that have commitment and determination to finish what they start, to live with conviction. We need people that will “go the second mile”.

The story is told that “Second-mile people always excel. Around 1920 a pharmacist bought a drug store on the south side of Chicago. Soon, he was bored with his job and began to dream how he could make it more exciting. It was during a time when people were just beginning to call in their orders using a telephone, so this man decided to challenge himself to make his job more interesting. He decided to see how quickly he could deliver a telephone order.

When someone called in, he repeated the order aloud, including the name and address. As he spoke with the caller, his assistant filled the order and a driver left immediately to deliver it. The druggist kept the customer on the phone chatting until the order arrived at the caller’s home. Most of the customers lived nearby, of course, but this kind of prompt service was revolutionary, and word soon spread. It became the busiest pharmacy in Chicago. He bought other stores and added new ideas like a soda fountain. Within a few years, he had a chain of stores.”

Boredom always sets in when we become too comfortable with our job. Maybe the job is not as challenging as we want or maybe we feel the job does not measure up to our abilities. So many people assume that they are only working for a paycheck and miss the bigger picture. God created us to work. Moreover, we were created to work as Paul says to “do God’s will from your heart.” When we begin to look past boredom and accept the job before us, then we can begin dreaming about what it can be. We begin to see how it can be improved. We become one of the persons who will go the second mile; we can make a difference!

As Paul Harvey would say, “And now the rest of the story”. Can you guess the name of the pharmacist? He was Charles Walgreen. Today, there are over 5,000 Walgreens because of a man who decided to go the second mile.”

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

There are so many things to distract my attention today. Help me to deal with the worse distraction of all, boredom. Help me to focus my attention on the job in front of me realizing that I am working for You! No matter the task, give me clarity of mind, steadiness of purpose, and a resolve to see it through. In Jesus Name, Amen.