For many Friday marks the end of the work week, while for others it is only beginning (those who provide the services for much of our weekend rest and recreation). Whichever category you find yourself in today, let us pause to thank the God and Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ, for the work He has given us. ”For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, so that we should walk in them,” (Eph. 2:10), both for His glory and our good. So let us give thanks today and everyday for today’s work:

O Christ who supplies my every need, I praise you for all provisions and for the means by which they are provided. For my current employment, in this season of life, I give you thanks. By it, may I meet my own needs, and contribute to the needs of others. Let me work and serve in this position with mindfulness, creativity, and kindness, loving you well by loving all whom I encounter here.

Jesus, be ever present as mediator between me and my employer, between me and my supervisors and co-workers, and in all my dealings with others in this work, reminding me that my treatment of them is the strongest evidence of my affection for you. And certainly my treatment of them includes good work, done well, rather than bad work, done poorly that they then have to make up for! Grant me therefore the patience to listen to others, the humility to learn from them, the compassion to consider their needs as my own, and the grace to wear well the name of my Lord in this place, remembering that I arrive here each day as an emissary of your kingdom.

Let me be an asset to my employer and superiors, working for their flourishing without resentment. Let me be a support to my peers, contributing to their advancement without jealousy. Let me be an encouragement to any I train or lead, affirming and equipping them without disdain. May the days of my employment here be meaningful. Use this chapter in my life to accomplish your ends, whatever they might be. May my presence here daily suggest your presence here.

And may the outworking of the gospel be always evident in this my work, that my service as an employee might be ever reckoned and received as service first rendered unto you, O Christ. Amen.[1]