Audiobook excerpt of The Word Before Work daily devotional

On November 15, I'm releasing the Word Before Work Daily Devotional Book and Audiobook to help us all connect God's Word to our work every weekday of every week of the year. So today I wanted to share one of those 52 weeks worth of devotionals with you to help you get a feel for this audiobook. So without further ado, here is a clip of yours truly reading through week 18 of the word Before Work Daily Devotional Audiobook. Here you go. Week 18 Monday Unknown future numbers 9:15 through 17 on the day the tabernacle, the tent of the Covenant Law, was set up, the cloud covered it from evening till morning. The the cloud above the tabernacle looked like fire. That is how it continued to be. The cloud covered it and at night it looked like fire. Whenever the cloud lifted from above the tent, the Israelites set out. Whenever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped. Wouldn't it be nice if God still worked this way today, sending us a cloud to tell us when to leave a job, start a business, or add something to our weekly routines? I don't know about you, but I've never experienced a God ordained cloud directing my decisions. That's just not how God typically works today. But you and I have three resources that are even better when facing big decisions. God's Word, God in us through the Holy Spirit and the God given freedom to choose as long as our decisions aren't out of line with His Word and the Spirit's promptings in our hearts. God has given us the privilege of choosing where to live, which job offer to accept, and when to launch a business. And we can trust that regardless of which decision we make, God will work every every outcome for our good and his glory. In the words of Corrie 10 boom, never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God. What unknown futures are you wrestling with today? Don't wait for God to move a cloud to show you the way. As long as both paths are in line with God's word, make a choice and trust that unknown future to the Lord. Week 18 Tuesday the difference between identity and worth Luke 16:19 20 and 22:23 There was a rich man who lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus. The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried in Hades where he was in torment. He looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. Jesus named Abraham and Lazarus in this story, but referred to the third character simply as the rich man. Why does this man remain nameless? Pastor Timothy Keller said that it's because that was all he was, just a rich man. If you make wealth your very identity and something takes the money away, there is no you left. You are prosperous and successful, or you are nothing. Now, we must tread carefully here. I cringe when I hear pastors exhort their congregations not to let their work become their identity, because what's often implied is that work outside the four walls of the church doesn't matter. This, of course, is totally contradictory to what we see in Scripture. Your vocational gifts are an enormous part of what makes you you. They are a part of your identity. The problem is when our work becomes our ultimate source worth when we turn work from a good thing into something so important that if we lost it, we would feel as if we've lost our very sense of self. That's what I think is happening here with the rich man. May we not allow the same thing to happen to us. Week 18 why we never move past the gospel Psalm 25:5 guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. My hope is in you all day long. Can you say that with a straight face? I know I can't. Most days it might be true in the mornings, after I've spent time in the Word meditating on the ultimate hope of the Gospel. But once I sit down at my desk, it often feels like my hope is in signing the next book deal, hitting a milestone in podcast subscribers, or helping the kids get straight A's at school. These are examples of good things that you and I should be ambitious for. They are part of how we do the work God has called us to do in the world. But but they shouldn't be our hope. Why? Because they aren't secure. I have no ultimate control over my next book deal or whether or not my kids make the honor roll. Thus, setting my hope on these fragile things will inevitably disappoint. This is why we can never move past the gospel. The temptation to place our hope in the next promotion, acquisition or project at work can be immense. The only antidote is to constantly preach the gospel to ourselves, reminding ourselves that our hope is in our status as adopted children of God. Even if you fail to accomplish what you've set out to do at work today, your eternal hope of salvation is secure. You can be assured of God's never stopping, never giving up, unbreaking always and forever love. Let this truth Marinate in your heart all day long. Week 18, Thursday. Short arms. Numbers 11, 13, 14, 16 and verse 18. Where can I get meat for all these people? I cannot carry all these people by myself. The burden is too heavy for me. The Lord said to Moses, tell the people now the Lord will give you meat and you will eat it. Moses was leading the Israelites through the wilderness, and they weren't a happy bunch. God had given them the miracle of manna, mysterious grain that fell from the sky. But the people were craving something else. Specifically, they were demanding that Moses provide them with meat. That's the context leading up to today's passage, where Moses pleaded with the Lord for help, saying, I cannot carry all these people by myself. The burden is too heavy for me. Do you ever feel, like Moses, like the pressure of providing for your family or employees is simply too great? Here's the thing. You're right. The burden is too heavy for you to bear, but it is not too heavy for the Lord. A few verses later, after the Lord promised to provide the Israelites with meat for a whole month, Moses began to doubt. He said, here I am among 600,000 men on foot, and you say, I will give them meat to eat for a whole month. See Numbers 11:21. God's answer is priceless. He simply asked Moses, is the Lord's arm too short? See numbers 1123. Our arms are too short to bear the burden of providing for those who depend on us. Yes, God works through our work to deliver his provision, but ultimately it is he alone who puts food on the tables of our families and teams rest in him as the source of your provision. Today, Week 18, Friday Redeeming the tax business Luke 19 8, 9. Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, look, Lord, here and now, I give half of my possessions to the poor. And if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount. Jesus said to him, today, salvation has come to this house. Luke recorded a few instances of Jesus calling people away from their vocations to follow Him. For example, in Luke 5:1 11, Jesus called four fishermen, Peter, Andrew, James and John, to fish for people instead of fish. So they left everything and followed him. See Luke 5:11. It can be easy to read accounts like this one and think, if I really love Jesus, I would lay down my proverbial net, my business, my career as a graphic designer, my work as a teacher, and follow Jesus full time. But not so fast. While Jesus called some people away from their vocations, he called others to return to their work as a means of following him. Zacchaeus is just one example. He was a chief tax collector who accumulated great wealth by overcharging people on their taxes when he met Jesus. Jesus didn't say, you now must change what you do professionally in order to follow me. But Zacchaeus newfound apprenticeship to Jesus radically changed how he would work in the future. If I cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount. As Zacchaeus shows us, following Jesus often doesn't require us to change what we do vocationally, but it does require that we change how we work more justly, more excellently, and more lovingly for the glory of God and the good of others. For those who don't know, recording an audiobook is easily the most exhausting thing you'll ever do. But it's a lot of fun, and I'm so glad I got to do it. Hey, if you liked what you heard, pick up the full version of the Word Before Work audiobook on Audible. Or if you'd rather have it in hardback or ebook, head on over to Amazon or wherever you buy your books. Guys, I'm praying that this audiobook is an immense blessing to you that helps you connect God's Word and the Gospel of Jesus Christ to your work every single day of the week. God Bless.