“I don’t wanna go to VBS . . .” whines my 6 year old, Jemma, through closed eyelids, with a drool spot on the pillow, clutching her blanket like it’s the last piece of bread for entire starving village. So Jessica gently rolls her body around on the bed until her legs come off the bed and touch the floor, five minutes later (no joke) Jemma is running around the house getting ready, chattering about all the fun things she’s going to do at VBS!

The nature of motivation is strange. All humans are wired this way. Daniel 6:4 says that Daniel, “was neither corrupt nor negligent.” Why do we assume someone has to be either corrupt or negligent? Because it’s human nature to want to work less. The new American dream is to work less and get paid more. It’s entitled, lazy and against God’s plan. God designed you for work. Work is good.

Truth: hard work enables more hard work. The less you work the harder it becomes to start. When you work, you build up your physical mental emotional and spiritual muscles to be able to handle more. There is a limit (working more does not necessarily produce more motivation to work), sometimes you need to diversify your work portfolio with different kinds of work to engage your mind differently, your emotions differently, your body differently. That diversification of activity between – people work, house work, desk work, manual work, sitting work, standing work, family work – will produce a rhythm of proper work motivation. You’re not built to do nothing. You’re built to be active. God hardwired activity into your DNA, but it takes a connection with the Holy Spirit to tap into organic and life-giving work motivation.

So take the first step – gently roll your body over, put your feet on the floor, get upright, and get working. Watch God work in you through this principle.