Duty

Luke 17:7-10 records a short yet powerful parable about duty. (You can read it at the bottom of this blog). The words are red, thus belonging to Jesus, so take them to heart then ask yourself: Am I expecting special thanks for doing something that is expected of me—for my duty?

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the word duty means something that is done as part of a job or because it is morally right or the law requires it. Basically it is a responsibility that we are accountable for. We all have duties whether they be at home, work, school, etc. As Christians, we have Kingdom duties, too, such as love others, be fruitful, subdue the earth, pray, and give. Sometimes, we go over and above our basic duty and do favors for people.

When our daughter was younger, we assigned the chore of washing dishes to her. The first time she stepped into this new assignment, she grumbled around afterwards. When asked why, she said because we didn't thank her for her actions. I promptly thanked and praised her, not thinking anymore about it. The next several times she completed her chore, though, she continued to expect the same response from us. I thanked her each time and pondered the stirring in my spirit until I came to the conclusion that I had failed in explaining the concept of duty to her. She was wanting me to thank her because she was doing a favor for me by cleaning the dishes. What she didn't understand was that she wasn't doing me a favor because the responsibility of the dishes wasn't mine—it was hers. She thought she was filling in for me and wanted thanks for her special help. We had to explain to her that the chore was reassigned and no longer mine. It had become her duty and she wasn't filling in for anyone but herself.

 
Are we so different from this young girl? How many times do we sit around and grumble because we are waiting on the Lord to thank us for our efforts? As if it were His duty to pray with people and we just filled in for Him. And what about work? If our job is to shred paper and we spend the day doing it, are we expecting a thank you at the end of the day for performing a basic duty?

Many people claim burnout these days, and if you don’t believe me, then check out your social media wall. A wise man once said that burnout isn't caused from working too hard; it's caused from not seeing enough results. I'd like to add to this observation and take it a step further. What if the "results" we are waiting on are these misplaced expectations of praise and gratitude for doing our duties? I think burnout for many folks is self-induced. They do a duty but expect the response/reward of a favor, and when they don't get the emotional results, they feel burned out. The situation can be remedied by focusing their blurry line between duty and favor.

For proper understanding of the difference between duty and favor in your own life, make a list of your duties. Be sure to include those related to work, career, home and family, church, school, sports, etc. When you do something on this list, vow to not anticipate gratitude and praise from others. But if you do receive it, then count it as a blessing instead of an expectation.

When you take ownership your duties and perform them for the simple reason that they are your responsibility, you will get immediate satisfaction from the accomplishment instead of waiting for praise that may never come. Duty and favors are not the same, and you have a duty to know the difference.

Luke 17:7-10 from The Message

“Suppose one of you has a servant who comes in from plowing the field or tending the sheep. Would you take his coat, set the table, and say, ‘Sit down and eat’? Wouldn’t you be more likely to say, ‘Prepare dinner; change your clothes and wait table for me until I’ve finished my coffee; then go to the kitchen and have your supper’? Does the servant get special thanks for doing what’s expected of him? It’s the same with you. When you’ve done everything expected of you, be matter-of-fact and say, ‘The work is done. What we were told to do, we did.’”