A guest post by Judd Palmer, author of Ask Her Out

I never thought I would be a hearing aid specialist. It was completely not on my radar.

It does, however, include many things that I enjoy doing. After working dozens of jobs prior to this, I finally found a trade that I enjoy, one about which I can say, “Wow—I get paid to help people hear better!”

It is important to go after what you want to do. You may not know the exact job right now, but you can find out the themes that excite you or are rewarding for you.

When you talk to a woman about your job, what you want to do, or what you are studying, be yourself and be honest about your position.

What you are currently doing for work may represent where you are in life, but again, it may not. So don’t worry about it. The main thing is to work for the Lord, because He sees everything you do and will reward you.

A reward can come in many forms.

It could be a sense of accomplishment for doing good work even if you didn’t need to. It could look like having internal peace because you treated customers like they were Jesus, as we are called to do (Matt. 25:40). It could look like building patience and character, or it could even look like getting promoted. This may be a job that leads to another job.

But whatever this job leads to, it will work out for your good. God doesn’t waste anything.

You are a citizen of heaven. When you’re working for the Lord, your work is as worship unto Him (Col. 3:23). If that sounds crazy to you, try it for a time and then form your opinion. I tell you what—it will be much more enjoyable for you to work for the Lord than to complain and look at your job through critical eyes. I know because I’ve been there. I’ve had some horrible jobs, but I tried to make the best of them.

I once had a survival job working at one of those kiosks in a shopping mall. You know the ones—they have cool things for sale like trinkets that fly and remote-controlled trucks, or there’s the less cool version that sells cell phones or portable steam irons.

Then there was me, working at a kiosk for a trade school. Yes, it was as boring and lame as it sounds.

I would just stand there smiling at shoppers as they walked by. I wasn’t selling anything and had a form for people to fill out if they wanted information about the school. That was it. For hours and hours and hours. When a former high school classmate saw me, I was humiliated. Yep, that’s what I was doing after all these years—working for a temp company at a kiosk for a trade school. I tried to make the best of it by having a good attitude and smiling at people.

Become a thermostat, not a thermometer.

Change the “temperature” instead of just reflecting what’s going on around you. With an unjust boss or supervisor, work for the Lord and bless that person; pray for them. Pray for your customers and coworkers.

The only thing you can control in this situation is yourself. So shine and leave behind the whine.

Judd Palmer is the author of Ask Her Out: Pursuing Freedom, Manhood, and Women. Visit his website at askheroutthebook.com for more information.