Most of us spend the majority of our waking hours doing work. Some of that work is paid (9-5 jobs, piecing together part-time jobs); for others of us, that work is unpaid (volunteering, household chores). Work is a created good: part of what it means to bear the image of God. Work shapes our days, forms our lives and places us in a constellation of relationships with others. Our daily labor is one of the primary settings where we practice our faith.
The work itself matters, and the way we inhabit work matters just as much.
As a new year begins, many people think about fresh starts, goals and resolutions. The start of 2026 also offers space for decisions about pace, attention, prayer and limits, all of which can shape how we experience our work over time. These choices help us recognize God’s presence in ordinary days.
Sustainable, fruitful work grows from patterns that keep us grounded in God’s care. When our work rhythms are rooted in presence and trust, we can remain faithful and whole over the long haul. Here are a few practices worth considering in 2026.
Zooming out, zooming in
Working on our work, not just in our work
Much of our work is driven by deadlines and expectations. Emails arrive, projects multiply, we juggle urgent and important things, and needs press in. In that environment, it becomes easy to stay focused on what has to be completed next without pausing to reflect on what our work is forming in us.
Zooming out creates space to see more clearly.
A mentor once encouraged me to schedule a consistent block of “balcony time” each week. This was time to step back and reflect on my work as a whole. During those moments, I could consider how different responsibilities were shaping people, relationships and my own spiritual life.
In that kind of space, important questions rise to the surface:
- Is my work helping me remain attentive to God’s presence?
- What kind of person is this pace forming me into?
- Where is tension appearing, and what might it be revealing?
- Who around me may need greater care or support?
- What does faithfulness look like in this season?
These questions apply to many forms of work. Parents, teachers, caregivers, managers, volunteers, students and retirees all live within systems that shape their attention and energy. Setting aside time to reflect on our work allows us to engage it with greater wisdom and intention.
One simple practice for the new year is to choose a regular time to ask a single question such as, “What is my work producing in me lately?” This kind of reflection opens space for insight and prayer.
Prayer and reflection
Working with God
A spiritual director once asked me two questions that lingered long after the conversation ended.
“How often are you aware that God cares deeply for the people you serve?”
“How often do you trust that God is able to care for your life and needs?”
Many people long to live with faith and trust. The pressures of modern work often pull us toward self-reliance and constant effort. Prayer helps reorient our attention and reminds us that God is present within our work.
One senior-adult friend of mine carried significant responsibility over many years; and she shared a few practices that helped her stay attentive to God throughout the day:
- pausing before meetings to pray for wisdom and restraint
- praying for coworkers and colleagues by name
- offering short prayers when stress arose
- giving thanks when moments of goodness appear (in a notebook she’d keep in her pocket)
These practices create awareness of God’s presence in ordinary moments.
At the end of the day, she reflected using three simple questions:
- Where did I notice God’s presence today?
- Where did I overlook it?
- Is there anything I need to repair, reconcile or release?
Prayer often includes words and it also includes listening. Moments of quiet attention help us recognize how God is already at work beyond our own efforts. Over time, this awareness shapes both our work and our sense of calling.
A helpful practice for the new year may be to end each day by asking one gentle question about God’s presence. This kind of reflection encourages honesty and deepens trust.
Sabbath and boundaries
Pray, play and trust
I once received an auto-reply from a colleague that read, “In keeping with my belief that God can run the world without my help, I am observing Sabbath today.”
That message captured the heart of Sabbath as an expression of trust.
In a culture that measures value by productivity, Sabbath creates space for rest, presence and joy. It affirms that human limits are part of God’s design. Choosing when to stop working becomes a spiritual practice that shapes our understanding of worth and dependence.
For many people, Sabbath can feel difficult to imagine. Work carries real responsibilities, and people rely on us. Even so, Sabbath invites reflection on where we place our trust and how tightly we tie our identity to being useful.
Over time, our family learned to experiment with small periods of rest we called “sablets.” These were short windows marked by prayer and play. As those rhythms took root, they grew into a more consistent practice. The form changed over time, but the purpose remained the same. Sabbath helped us remember who we are and who God is.
Every person’s Sabbath practice will look different. It may take the shape of a protected evening, a weekly boundary, a technology break or a commitment to stop checking messages at a certain hour. What matters is choosing a rhythm that creates space for trust and presence.
Sabbath invites a simple question for the new year: Do I trust God to run the world beyond my own ability to do so?
An invitation for 2026
The beginning of a new year offers an opportunity to live with greater attentiveness. Rather than adding more goals, consider making a few intentional decisions.
Set aside time to reflect on your work.
Practice a simple daily prayer of noticing.
Try a Sabbath (or a “sablet” practice) and create a boundary that expresses trust.
Work shaped by reflection, prayer and rest can form a steady and spacious life. When our rhythms align with God’s way of caring for the world, faithfulness grows over time through ordinary, attentive practices.
Rev. Ethan Linder is the pastor of discipleship at College Wesleyan Church in Marion, Indiana, and contributing editor at The Wesleyan Church’s Education and Clergy Development Division.
