Article June 22, 1992 Issue

Who does the work?

God enables us to do all that we have to do.

Robert Dennison Wright

When we have done something worthwhile, where should the credit go? Is it all right to take a bit of personal pride in an accomplishment? "After all," we might say, "isn't it good for my self-esteem to realize that I have shown some ability to get things done?"

This sort of personal pride of accomplishment, however, sometimes has a way of turning into self-satisfaction wherein we forget where our abilities come from. We think: I did a pretty good job there. Look at how much I accomplished. I did that better than most people could. Before we know it, we may fall into the trap of thinking we are really great stuff. And human pride gets in the way of hearing God's commendation for His children.

Who actually does the work, anyway? Do we ourselves generate accomplishments through our own abilities without outside help, or is credit due elsewhere? Maybe we've only built on what others have already done. If that's the case, claiming we alone did it is not at all fair, will probably not be appreciated, and may get us into trouble. We can surely afford to acknowledge what others have contributed to the success of our work, and still remain pleased at what we have done.

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