Have you noticed that when you have been on vacation, it is hard to go back to work? I think it might have something to do with our different mindsets depending on what we are doing. At work, we often strive to accomplish tasks and get our work done. While we are on vacation, we are just being, enjoying our life and our families. To shift from just being back into the grind of work is challenging.
There is a beloved passage in Matthew that says, “Therefore, I say to you, don’t worry about your life, what you’ll eat or what you’ll drink, or about your body, what you’ll wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds in the sky. They don’t sow seed or harvest grain or gather crops into barns. Yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth much more than they are? Who among you by worrying can add a single moment to your life?” (Matthew 6:25-27)
Jesus is giving us a poetic symbol of birds to remind us of His providential care. We don’t have to be frantic in our work life. When we only focus on striving to accomplish tasks, we are not being creative, and we are not enjoying the fruit of our labor. Maybe we need to think about just being when we are at work. That doesn’t mean sloughing off at work or not getting your job done, but instead, seeing the workday as an opportunity to also be.
Give yourself time to be creative. Build margins of time between your meetings. Eat lunch with a coworker or go for a walk instead of eating in front of your computer. Do some breathing prayers throughout your day. Remember, God takes care of the birds. As much as He loves them, He loves you and me a lot more.
Slow down today and breathe, and remember, God is God of your work life as well as you homelife.