During the past several months, I’ve been taking a look at the 31st chapter of Proverbs- after years of avoiding it- and it should come as no surprise that my assumptions about it were all wrong. It turns out that it’s not a narrow list of “superwoman” qualities to which I should aspire. Instead, it actually encourages creativity. Of course, no matter how creative and fulfilling life may be, there will always be some things I am just not motivated to do- which brings me to verses 17 and 18. Here we learn that a virtuous wife is energetic and hardworking. She makes sure her dealings are profitable and her lamp burns late into the night. When I first read these verses, they seemed to be a reminder that there are times when I need to just grit my teeth and do whatever needs doing, whether I want to or not. If I work hard enough, the verses seem to say, the results will be profitable. In other words, “just do it!”

Before putting my nose to the grindstone, however, I began to wonder just what this scripture means by “profitable.” What, exactly, does this word mean in God’s economy? 1 Corinthians 13 sheds some light on this. It says that without love I profit nothing, no matter what I might do.

Looking at the verses from Proverbs, in light of this passage from Corinthians, was an “aha” moment for me. It turns out that simply putting my nose to the grindstone, when I’m faced with a task I’m not very motivated about, is not enough. If I want my work to have any value, I can’t “just do it.” In order for it to be profitable, it must be done with an attitude of love. I’m glad the Lord showed me the connection between these two passages of scripture, because I believe He’s been patiently trying to teach me this lesson for a while now. One particular experience comes to mind. I’m sure God was speaking to me about this very thing, but, unfortunately, I missed it at the time.

I enjoy helping in the area of children’s ministry at church. Lately, I’ve volunteered to be a “helper” in a class, rather than the lead teacher. After teaching kindergarten all week, it’s nice not to have the responsibility of preparing a lesson for Sunday, but to be able to just “show up and help out.” A while back, a sweet young woman volunteered to teach the class I was helping with. She was eager to take on this job, but it seemed she hadn’t had much experience working with young children. In addition, she didn’t appear to be thinking ahead. Each week, she seemed to be “winging it.” This isn’t easy with four year olds, especially when you haven’t been teaching long enough to have a bag of tricks to pull from. Not surprisingly, the lack of structure led to discipline problems. As the weeks went by, I began taking on more and more responsibility for lessons. I was egotistical enough to think the Lord apparently needed me in this capacity, so I decided to just grit my teeth and do it. Although I tried to encourage the young woman I was “helping” I’m sure that, at times, my irritation was apparent. Eventually, she decided to stop teaching the class. She said her work schedule had become too busy, but I couldn’t help but wonder if her decision was influenced by my “helpfulness.” I had worked hard, but I’m afraid my attitude kept the results from being profitable.

1 Corinthians 13: 4 says that love is patient and kind. I hope I can remember that my attitude toward my work is just as important as the work itself. Thankfully, this passage of scripture is not just a list of how we should love others. It describes how God loves us. In fact, allowing Him to love through me is the only way I’ll ever be able to truly love. So I’m glad He will continue to be patient with me as I sloooowly learn how to make my work truly valuable in His sight.