Do It While You Can: Serving Christ Wholeheartedly

Paul takes the everyday places of life and gives them kingdom purpose. Colossians 3:23-24 calls wives, husbands, children, fathers, workers, parents, ministry leaders, and every child of God to see their responsibilities through the lens of serving Christ. Whatever sits in a person’s hand, whether family, work, gifts, ministry, relationships, or plain old daily responsibilities, becomes an act of worship when Christ is the One being served.

The call to “do it while you can” pushes back against halfhearted living. Christ does not deserve leftovers after the day has taken all the strength, attention, comfort, and affection. Christ deserves the first and the best because God gave humanity His very best in Jesus. The cross, the empty tomb, the healings, the garden, and the whole life of Christ show a Savior who did not hold back. Wholehearted effort is not an attempt to earn God’s love. Wholehearted effort is a fitting response to the One who gave everything.

The work in a person’s hand may look small to somebody else, but God does not measure it that way. The body needs the eye, the ear, the hand, the foot, and even the pinky toe. Different does not mean insignificant. Gifts are not given to sit dormant, and abilities are not given merely for recognition. Christ turns teaching children, picking up trash, working in an office, driving a truck, playing music, praying, and caring for family into service offered to Him.

The warning against delay carries real weight. Tomorrow is always tomorrow, and later has a way of never showing up. Ecclesiastes says that whatever the hand finds to do should be done with might, because a day is coming when that work can no longer be done. Family cannot always be put off. Calling cannot always be postponed. Faithfulness cannot always wait until life feels easier or older age finally arrives.

Paul grounds this urgency in a promised inheritance. People may overlook effort, forget sacrifice, or give less credit than is deserved, but God sees and God does not forget. Colossians calls believers to set their minds on things above because this world is not the final home. Christ, who is their life, will appear, and those raised with Him will appear with Him in glory. The reward may not fully show up on this side of glory, but nothing done for Christ is wasted. The call remains plain: give Christ effort, motivation, and expectation, and do it while there is still time.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Give Christ more than leftovers [53:34] Christ is not asking for what remains after work, stress, distractions, and personal ambition have consumed the day. God gave His best in His Son, and devotion answers that gift with deliberate attention rather than exhausted scraps. Faithfulness becomes more than a Sunday or Wednesday matter when Christ receives the first and best of daily life. [53:34]
• 2. Different gifts are never insignificant [49:52] The body of Christ does not need every person to have the same ability. God gives different gifts because every part has a necessary place, whether visible or unnoticed. A gift becomes fruitful when it is used with gratitude instead of being buried beneath comparison. [49:52]
• 3. Do not keep postponing obedience [01:02:48] Tomorrow is not a promise, and later is often just another name for avoidance. Family, service, calling, and spiritual seriousness can quietly slip away when they are continually deferred. The opportunity in the hand today is the opportunity God has actually given. [62:48]
• 4. God remembers unnoticed faithfulness [01:13:29] Human recognition is unstable, incomplete, and often disappointing. God sees work done for Christ even when nobody applauds, pays attention, or understands the cost. Nothing done for the Lord is wasted because the inheritance comes from Him. [73:29]
• 5. Set the mind on things above [01:19:34] Earthly life is real and precious, but it is not permanent. Christ calls His people to love what He loves and to live for what will remain when everything temporary passes away. Eternal focus gives daily labor its right purpose and keeps the heart from demanding its full reward here.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [38:28] - Colossians 3 and the Assignment
• [39:37] - Paul’s Instructions for Daily Life
• [40:13] - Do Everything as Unto the Lord
• [42:30] - Do It While You Can
• [45:48] - Every Assignment as Worship
• [47:04] - Give Christ Your Effort
• [49:52] - Different Gifts, Necessary Parts
• [52:18] - Go All In for God
• [56:49] - Do It With All Your Might
• [62:07] - Do Not Put Off Tomorrow
• [67:48] - Give Christ Your Expectation
• [73:29] - Nothing Done for Christ Is Wasted
• [78:43] - Set Your Mind on Things Above
• [81:30] - Take Advantage of Every Moment

Bible Reading

Colossians 3:23-24
“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” [38:28]

Ecclesiastes 9:10
“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.” [56:48]

Colossians 3:1-4
“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” [01:18:43]

Observation questions

1. In Colossians 3:23-24, who does Paul say believers are truly serving, and what reward does he say comes from that service? [40:19]
2. What kinds of everyday assignments were named as things God places in a person’s hands—at home, at work, in relationships, and in ministry? [47:42]
3. What contrast is made between different gifts and insignificant gifts, and how does the picture of the body help explain that contrast? [49:52]
4. According to Ecclesiastes 9:10, what reason is given for doing the work in one’s hand “with your might”? [56:48]

Interpretation questions

1. What does it mean for a believer to work “as for the Lord and not for men” when a boss, family member, customer, or church member may be difficult to serve? [43:29]
2. How does the promise of an inheritance from the Lord change the way believers understand work that is overlooked, underappreciated, or never publicly recognized? [01:13:29]
3. Ecclesiastes urges people not to delay the work placed before them. What kinds of obedience, service, or relationship-building are especially easy for believers to keep postponing? [01:03:10]
4. How does setting the mind on things above help believers give proper attention to present responsibilities without making earthly success or recognition their ultimate goal? [01:19:37]

Application questions

1. What is currently “in your hand”—a family responsibility, job, relationship, gift, ministry role, or daily task—that needs to be seen more clearly as service to Christ? [48:01]
2. In what area of life is Christ most likely receiving leftovers of time, energy, attention, or affection? What could it look like to offer Him first and best rather than what remains at the end of the day? [52:48]
3. Is there a gift or ability that has been buried under comparison, fear, busyness, or the thought that it is too small to matter? What is one practical way it could be used this week? [50:28]
4. What is one conversation, act of care, act of obedience, or step of service that has been pushed into “later”? What would it look like to take that step while the opportunity is present? [01:02:20]
5. Where is disappointment over a lack of recognition making it harder to serve with joy? How can the promise that God sees and remembers faithful service reshape that attitude? [01:17:44]
6. What would change this week if work, home life, church service, and ordinary responsibilities were approached with the thought, “I am serving the Lord Christ”? [01:22:42]