Excellence At WorkSample

Excellent Work Leads to God’s Favor

Although Joseph was sold into slavery, he still worked with excellence in order to serve God. In turn, God energized Joseph’s work with great favor, causing everything Joseph touched to flourish. He won the favor of his master Potiphar. But just as Joseph’s dreams didn’t bring instant authority, Joseph’s excellent service didn’t bring him instant comfort. Joseph refused to compromise his integrity by sleeping with Potiphar’s wife, and, in spite of his moral excellence, he ended up in jail. 

This story teaches us that we are not immune to bad things happening, even when we are faithful and work to the best of our ability. God is more concerned with the character of the person doing the work than with the outcomes. This is a blind spot in our leadership culture today. Companies focus almost exclusively on results. Whoever produces results gets celebrated and promoted. The character of the person and the integrity of the methods often don’t matter. If a leader leaves a pile of broken relationships and morally questionable decisions behind them, it’s the price to pay for success.

But Joseph’s story shows us that excellent work is more about the sort of person you become through your work than about the results themselves. As we trust God through all circumstances, He never forsakes us. Just as Joseph found favor in prison, God favors people who value deep, meaningful relationships with God and with others. 

When Joseph’s work flourished in Potiphar’s household, he could have made his success about himself and taken advantage of the privileges available to him. But he didn’t. His success was tied to God’s purpose – to bless God, others, and the world no matter what. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Prayer

Father, help me to use my work and position to bless those around me and the customers my work serves. Protect me from making my success about me —winning, getting promoted, earning a bonus. Help me to measure success by how much my work is in sync with God’s purpose for my work. In Jesus’ name. Amen.