The Pharisees asked Jesus, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?" (John 6:28). How audacious of any of us to think we can do the work of God! If anything at all is to be accomplished, it must be done by faith, with Christ's power enabling us. "Without Me," Jesus said, "you can do nothing" (John 15:5).

It's not easy to stop trusting ourselves and rely on Christ. In this world, the message we hear is that value comes from what we do, what we earn, and what we accomplish. If we believe that, life becomes a prolonged struggle to fix everything that's broken and strive for perfection in all we do. We'll be driven and compulsive, busier than God ever meant us to be, trying to do extremely well what He never intended us to do.

Jesus was never that busy. Throughout His public ministry, He had much to do and only a little more than 3 years to do it, yet His pace was measured and deliberate.

And so it comes to this: God's work must be done by God. We work, but we must rely on Him every step of the way.

Before you do anything else, begin your day by expressing your dependence on God. If you have trouble relying on Him, ask Him to help you. Growing faith, like any other job, is a job for God!    — David H. Roper