11/27/2025
Some fifty years ago, when I was 16, I worked in a fast-food restaurant. I earned a whopping 65 cents per hour. I worked harder for that pay than I see from most fast-food workers today. The fastest food comes from the fastest workers. We were trained to move quickly and efficiently. Most of my peers in the mid 60's were on board with this. We came to work and we came to work.
I remember one night, after closing, I was in the back of the restaurant cleaning up (washing pots and pans and utensils in the large sinks). It was my least favorite chore at work. Our store was managed by the two brothers who owned it. One of them was helping close this particular night. Jack walked up to me and said, "Tyner, you're the best clean up guy I've got!". My response set him back a bit. I said, with a tone of sarcasm, "Gee, thanks!".
He told me he was just trying to pay me a compliment, that I really did a good job and it was appreciated. They had noticed that no one ever had to redo something the next morning when I had clean up duty. I accepted the compliment and continued to work. I've never forgotten the transaction.
I wanted to be praised for something more honorable than cleaning nasty utensils in the back room, or moping the floor after everyone had gone home. That's the honest truth. I really didn't appreciate the importance of the job I did, even though I did it diligently. A good boss, however, saw the importance of affirming that diligence.
Proverbs 12:24 says, "Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in slave labor." For all the deficiencies of the home I grew up in, I am grateful that I was taught to work diligently. It has been my intent through my whole work life.
May I challenge you in this matter today? If you are on the bottom rung of the corporate ladder, work like you are on the next rung. Get rid of a "just enough to get by" attitude. If you are a "minimum wage worker", that does not justify doing minimal work. That is not the attitude of Christ. Jesus said, "If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles" (MT 5:42). You may FEEL like a slave on your job, but when Paul spoke to men who were literal slaves, he said, "Obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ" (Eph 6:5),
Paul wanted us to realize that this is essentially a heart issue. He went on to say, "Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart." (Eph 6:6). My good work ethic at 16 was not due to these scriptures; it resulted from parental teaching and modeling. I didn't even know these verses were in the Bible back then.
I was a hard worker but with a poor attitude. My poor attitude did not show in my work, as it does with many people; it showed in that moment of affirmation. If you were not fortunate enough to be taught at home to be a diligent worker, if that was not modeled for you, let the Word of God teach you better. If your attitude stinks, let the Spirit of God sweeten it.
Please hear what I have shared with you today. Your prosperity is likely at stake. Poor performance in the real world is rarely rewarded. Indeed, it shouldn't be rewarded. Good performance with a poor attitude is often discerned by supervisors. It is always seen by the God who wants you to be a great servant. Do the stuff you are sure no one notices. Do it with utter confidence that God notices and rewards. You just may be surprised, as I was in the back of that restaurant 50-plus years ago, to discover that someone other than God noticed your diligence. Dane Tyner
