Faith And Productivity How To Work With Purpose

Are you caught in the whirlwind of constant productivity, feeling like you're always falling short despite your best efforts? This soul-nourishing conversation explores the delicate balance between ambition and faith, offering a refreshing perspective for believers struggling with today's relentless pressure to achieve.

The modern world equates busyness with success, but Scripture paints a different picture. Jesus doesn't call us to exhaustion but to purposeful work aligned with divine timing. Through powerful verses like Matthew 11:28 ("Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest") and Proverbs 16:9, we discover that surrendering our productivity to God's timeline isn't about working less—it's about working with greater intention and peace.

I share my personal struggle with social media metrics and the obsession with visible results, revealing how God taught me to shift from striving to serving. This transformation came through four practical spiritual practices that can revolutionize your approach to productivity: beginning each day in prayer, setting realistic God-centered goals, honoring the necessity of rest, and trusting God completely with outcomes. These aren't just spiritual platitudes but life-changing principles that have brought genuine peace amid demanding seasons.

Whether you're facing workplace pressure, ministry challenges, or personal goals that seem eternally out of reach, remember this truth: you don't have to do everything to be everything. Your worth isn't measured by completed tasks but by your identity in Christ. Ready to exchange pressure for purpose? Subscribe to Divine Harmony and join our community of believers seeking to honor God in every aspect of life, including our productivity.

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to Faith and Productivity
• 5:31 Surrendering to God's Timeline
• 9:10 Practical Tips for Faith-Based Productivity
• 13:42 Personal Story: Social Media Obsession
• 17:36 Final Encouragement and Prayer
• 21:26 Invitation to Know Jesus Christ

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:09

Welcome back, friends, to another episode of Divine Harmony, where we blend faith, purpose and practical life lessons to help you walk boldly in your spiritual journey. I'm your host, cliché Rice, and today we are diving into a topic that I know is near and dear to so many of us, especially in today's fast-paced, pressure-filled world. We're going to talk about faith and productivity how to work with purpose and not pressure. Now, before we jump in, I want to ask a question. How many of you have felt like you're constantly juggling a million tasks, have felt like you're constantly juggling a million tasks, racing against the clock and just never seeming to catch up? You know the feeling. I feel it all the time. I'm doing everything I can, but it still doesn't feel like enough. Well, you're not alone, and today we're going to explore how we can approach productivity from a faith-based perspective and balance that ambition with surrendering to God's perfect timing. I think it's safe to say that, as modern believers, we often get caught in that whirlwind of productivity, whether it's like our careers or our personal goals, or even our faith journey. We're constantly striving for success, and while striving is not bad, the pressure to be constantly productive can sometimes leave us feeling exhausted, disconnected from the true purpose of our work and downright just done right. So today I want to offer some guidance on how to approach productivity not through the lens of the worldly pressure, but with the peace that comes from trusting God's timing and aligning our ambitions with his will.

Speaker 1: 1:51

Let's start by acknowledging the world we live in. We live in a culture that equates busyness with success. Right? So the busier you are, the more successful you are. The more you do, the more you achieve, the more projects you take on, the more people you help. The more you climb the ladder, the more successful you are, the more things you have.

Speaker 1: 2:17

But as believers, we need to ask ourselves is that really how God defines success? What does God say? Here's the thing God didn't call us to live in constant stress, not by a long shot, right, in fact, in Matthew 11, 28, jesus says come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. There's something about that rest. It's something about when he says I will give you rest. I mean, it's just something about that piece of the scripture. It's the kind of rest that doesn't come from doing less, but from doing everything with purpose, everything aligned with God's will for our lives. Now that doesn't mean we don't work hard. The Bible speaks about diligence and doing everything as if we're working for our lives. Now that doesn't mean we don't work hard. The Bible speaks about diligence and doing everything as if we're working for the Lord, and Colossians 3.23 speaks about that. But we must make sure that God is at the forefront of everything that we do, and we can't confuse constant activity with spiritual success either. So now that we've talked about the pressure of productivity, let's shift our focus a little into what it looks like to surrender our productivity to God's timing.

Speaker 1: 3:33

One of the hardest things for us especially me and especially as ambitious, goal-driven people is letting go of control and trusting that God's timeline is often very different from our own. I struggle with this immensely, just making sure that I keep at the forefront of my mind, constantly reminding myself God's time, god's will not mine's, god's will not mine's, god's time, not my timing. Because I'm always trying to do things to, whether it's change my following on social media or marketing tactics, to build certain things and do other things in my life. I'm never well, I'm not going to say I'm never, but I'm always focusing on what I can do. Sometimes I get caught up in that rat race versus letting go and let God so.

Speaker 1: 4:20

In Proverbs 16, 9, it says in their hearts, humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps. Let that sink in for a minute. You may have a five-year plan, a 10-year plan or even a day-to-day plan, right? Or even a to-do list that you're determined to check off, but the truth is, we don't always have control over how things unfold. And that's just the truth. And that's actually the truth, and that's actually okay, right.

Speaker 1: 4:46

I've been in seasons where I felt like I was doing everything right, working harder than everybody else, and yet things weren't moving as quickly as I hoped. I'm actually in a season of that right now. So everything I'm saying today is actually pertaining to me. I'm speaking to myself. Maybe you've been there too, right? Maybe I'm not the only one, but in those moments, I've had to remind myself that God is always at work, even when I don't see immediate results.

Speaker 1: 5:10

Surrendering my productivity to God's timing means trusting that, even when I don't see immediate fruit, he's working in ways I can't yet understand. It means recognizing that our worth doesn't come from what we accomplish, but from how we see Christ and also from who we are in Christ. Let's not forget that. So how we see Christ meaning understanding the scripture and what he says about productivity, and also from who we are in Christ. Right, so let's talk a little bit about balancing ambition with faith. We know that God has given us unique gifts, talents and passions, and we're called to use those to serve others and build his kingdom period.

Speaker 1: 6:01

But how do we balance that desire for success with the need for rest, humility and surrender? Well, it starts by setting clear boundaries. This isn't about working less, it's about working with intention. When we work with purpose, knowing that everything we do is for God's glory, it shifts the way we approach our task. So in Colossians 3.17, and I'll read it it says and whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God, the Father. Through him, whether it's a big project at work or it's a simple task at home, we can do it with excellence, with a heart of gratitude and with a spirit that honors God. So how do we practically balance ambition with faith?

Speaker 1: 6:51

Here are a few tips that I came up with through the studying when I was studying for this, and the first one is start your day in prayer Before jumping into work. Take a moment to surrender your day to God. Ask him to guide your steps, to give you wisdom and help you work for his glory. If you do not start your day talking to God, you leave yourself open for your thoughts and your will to come through versus God's. Also, set realistic goals. So, number two set realistic goals. Instead of trying to do everything, focus on what's most important. Ask God to help you to prioritize the tasks that align with his purpose for you. So talk to God, right? So you start with prayer and then you set some realistic goals for your day and you ask God to help you prioritize them.

Speaker 1: 7:44

Number three know when to rest. I talk to so many of my family members and friends that are so exhausted, that are so tired, and I'm just like take rest, know when to say no and just sit back and take a moment to yourself. Now, rest isn't laziness, right? So let me make that very clear Rest isn't laziness. It's essential for your well-being to take rest, because if you're so busy and you're doing so many things and you're pulled so many different ways, then you're starting to get sick, catch colds, things like that, and then you're not productive at all. So don't look at it as if I'm resting, I'm being lazy. So many of us have that mindset. A lot of it is because the way that we were raised. I know. In my instance it's because the way I was raised. I was raised in a home where you always had to be doing something right. If you weren't moving, you weren't doing enough. So sometimes I feel like if I sit down and I just take a rest, I'm being lazy. But I have to constantly, even today, and I had to remind myself that rest isn't lazy, it's just essential for our wellbeing.

Speaker 1: 8:48

So God himself also rested after creation. Right, and we're called to honor that rhythm of work as rest. So God rested, and so do we. We need to rest. And the fourth and most important one is trust God with the outcomes. Your job is to be faithful with what he's giving you. The results are in his hands. You're faithful in what he gives you. The results are in his hands. So you just get up every day, do what it is that you do, be faithful in all of your productivity and all of your tasks. The results are in his hands. He will handle the rest. He will take whatever it is you're doing to the next level. He will give you the peace that you need to get through whatever it is you have to do. He handles that part. You show up, you do what you're supposed to do, you honor him with gratitude and thankfulness and he takes care of the rest. Now let's be practical for a moment, because let me be very clear, this is easier said than done, and I'll share a personal story about how I've had to learn this balance in my own life Right now, through this podcast. I can even talk about that, this podcast, I can even talk about that.

Speaker 1: 9:57

When I started in the beginning and I got on social media, I was literally hawking the followers, hawking the interactions, hawking the engagement. I was like a hawk and I was like, okay, who am I reaching? I want to get the word of God out there. So much I want to touch the hearts, I want to touch the people. It was a constant. So much I want to touch the hearts, I want to touch the people. Like it was a constant, constant thing, you know, and it was just like I would see.

Speaker 1: 10:26

I sent a video out. Let's say, I post a video and it gets 400 views, but only one person comments. Or a video gets 700 views and only one person subscribes. And it was literally driving me crazy and I was going in circles trying to figure out well, what am I doing wrong? And, to be honest with you, it wasn't even about having a following to be successful. It was more so about having a following to spread the gospel. I felt like if there was no one commenting or if there was no one subscribing, that the word wasn't getting out. That's how it was, that's how my thought was. Or maybe what I'm saying nobody wants to hear it, or maybe I was doubting the call on my life that I knew so clearly that God had spoken to me.

Speaker 1: 11:10

And through that experience I learned a powerful lesson that true productivity doesn't come from striving Like. I was literally driving myself crazy trying to be proactive. Oh, how do I find out how many people like this video and why? So I can go out there and create another video like this and then maybe they'll talk about it. It was just crazy, right, and it comes from trusting that God will guide us in the right direction. That came from excuse me, I'm sorry that came from not trusting God that God will guide me in the right direction.

Speaker 1: 11:44

Right that? Striving for what I was thinking God wanted me to focus on when really I needed to let go and let God and just show up and do what it is that God had called me to do, and however long that takes, I'm okay with that. Now, like it doesn't matter if it takes six years, I'm okay with the one hearing something that resonates with them versus the 10,000, right? So trusting God's will to guide me in the right direction and open doors at the right time and help me to be faithful in the meantime is what it's all about. And God had to show me that through this podcast and through my social media. And I literally had to get on my knees and pray to God and ask him to help me be righteous in using social media and help me to be faithful to him when looking at social media, versus what I see Trust in his process and not what I see on the screen.

Speaker 1: 12:46

And you know, let me be very clear, this is so easier said than done. This is not something that I woke up and was like, okay, yeah, I still today look at social media and I'll look at the number. I wouldn't I don't like, I guess obsess over the number like I used to in the beginning, but every once in a while I will go and check and I think that God is showing me that you can check numbers. It's not a problem for you to look and see your progress and how you are progressing. The issue is when you're checking the numbers and you're obsessing over them, right? So I think I've come to a place and it's only through God's guidance and it's only through the Holy Spirit educating me and guiding me through right practices, right Educating me through wisdom and using social media, using wisdom to do that, right, what I'm looking at and things like that. And I just thank God for that, because I really was like going crazy trying to and imagine this.

Speaker 1: 13:52

I am going crazy trying to figure out an algorithm that I will never be able to figure out. There's no fast or no special secret or anything that I could have done to even change the engagement in a sense. I mean, yeah, I probably can go hire a multi-million dollar marketing firm that probably has studied all these algorithms in the background, but that's not what God was calling me to do, right? What he told me to do was show up, sit down, be quiet and watch me work, and that's what I had to learn. And since I've done that, I've noticed a change. I've noticed a change in my perspective, a change in the way that I work, a change in the time that I have to get things done, because I'm not so focused on what I could do better. I'm focused on serving, spreading the gospel, showing up and letting God work on the rest. So it's actually a lot less stressful for me, right? So I hope that these four tips will help you if you are feeling, I guess, the stress of a project or the stress of having to be on that hamster wheel constantly, and you know the stress of just am I doing enough? The stress of is my work, honoring God Is what I'm called to do, my purpose, benefiting anyone in the kingdom, right? So, again, I'll just go over those four tips real quick.

Speaker 1: 15:27

So, start your day in prayer. Make sure you give it to God every single day. Set realistic goals for yourself. If you work for a company and you're at work I used to work for a company, I used to work in corporate America for many years you have to set those goals. And let me tell you because I've developed some habits working in corporate America, habits like being a workaholic in a sense, where I could not leave the job. I could not stop until everything felt complete to me. And those were bad habits and I just knew when God led me to start this podcast, I did not want to take those bad habits into this, so I prayed really hard and God has delivered me from that.

Speaker 1: 16:07

But we tend to just work, work, work, work nonstop. Set realistic goals for yourself Instead of trying to do everything, do small tasks like okay, today I'm going to focus on these four things and when these four things are done, if my day is done, that's it. I'm going home and I know again, that sounds easier said than done with when a lot of people have certain jobs where it's so demanding. But the key point, the key thing is we have Christ right. God will work it out. If we leave it in his hands, he'll work it out where your boss may be a little bit more lenient with you, that your boss may see the work that you're doing, see that it's organized, see that you're getting things done and still praise you for it. So that's why we start with the prayer. We lift our jobs up and we give it to God. We set realistic goals and we know when to rest. Know when to tap out, know when to tap out and just go and take a moment to yourself, even if you're at work. Get up from that desk and take lunch I can't even tell you how many years I sat at my desk and worked through lunch and didn't even eat. Know when to tap out and take rest. And then, most importantly, trust God with the outcome right. So if we put it in his hands, he will not fail us. He will not fail us. So just keep that in mind. He won't fail us.

Speaker 1: 17:35

I hope today's conversation has encouraged you to rethink how you approach productivity. It's not about doing more right. It's not about doing more or checking off more boxes or reaching more milestones. It's about working with purpose, staying aligned with God's will and trusting his perfect timing. So remember, you don't have to do everything to be everything. You don't have to achieve everything on your own right. You don't have to do those things to feel successful. You are already enough because you're loved by God, who is in control of all, including your boss, your work, your desk. None of it belongs to you, none of it belongs to your boss, none of it belongs to anyone but God, and in God's eyes, you are already enough because he loves you. So, as you go about your day, take a deep breath, trust in God's timing and know that your purpose is bigger than what you can accomplish today. All right, guys, let's close for prayer. So, heavenly Father, we come to you today.

Speaker 1: 18:41

I ask that every listener has an open heart, an open mind and an open ear to hear what you have said today, lord God. Touch them in the areas that you know that they need to be touched by this, lord God. You know, lord, heavenly Father, everyone on this podcast that's listening. You know the issues that they're facing, you know the concerns they have on their job. You know how tired they are, lord God, and I pray that you would meet them in their time of tiredness and overworking, lord God, and I pray that you would meet them in their time of tiredness and overworking, lord God. Meet them where they are, heavenly Father, and give them peace, a peace that they will not understand.

Speaker 1: 19:20

Lord God, some people are in jobs where it's just so demanding and it's so egregious and it's just a lot on them, lord, and I pray that you would touch their hearts and give them a sense of peace, father. Lot on them, lord, and I pray that you would touch their hearts and give them a sense of peace, father. But help them, lord God, to understand and remember that there's nothing that they can accomplish without you, lord God, that you are in control of all. Heavenly Father, you are in control of all, and all belongs to you, lord God. So I pray even now, lord, that you would help them to understand this. Open the hearts of their employers, lord God. So I pray even now, lord, that you would help them to understand this. Open the hearts of their employers, Lord God, go in the midst of the workplace, heavenly Father, and move mightily, as we know you can, but most of all, help them to remember to trust in you, lord God, to trust in your timing, to have faith in you that you will turn it around, god, to trust in your timing, to have faith in you that you will turn it around, that you will work it out for them and it would be for their good, so that they would have peace, lord God, and rest in you. In Jesus's wonderful name, we pray. Amen and amen.

Speaker 1: 20:22

I never want to take for granted that everyone listening today knows Jesus. You can belong before you believe, but I want to extend an invitation for you to personally know Jesus Christ for yourself. If you haven't yet experienced his goodness and would like to, I invite you to pray this prayer with me. Lord God, I am a sinner, forgive me. Today I repent and ask you to come into my heart and my life, turn me around and make me a new creation. If you have prayed that prayer, you are now a child of God. I celebrate this step you've taken.

Speaker 1: 21:00

Now I encourage you to find a Bible-based church that teaches directly from Scripture. Also, feel free to reach out to us at DivineHarmonyFaithcom. We'd love to hear from you. We'd love to answer any questions you may have or pray for you and with you and keep you encouraged. Welcome home, and I honor the decision that you've just made to turn your life over to Christ. Thank you so much for listening today. I'd love to hear your thoughts on today's episode. If you found this helpful, please share it with someone who could benefit from it, and don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode and we get to spread the gospel out to everyone who would listen and who would not listen. So until next time, friends, walk boldly in your faith and know that you're working for a purpose and it is not pressure. So you have a wonderful rest of your day. I love you. God loves you. Goodbye.