Give me, dear Lord, a pure heart and a wise mind,

  that I may carry out my work according to your will.

Save me from all false desires,

  from pride, greed, envy, and anger,

  and let me accept joyfully every task you set before me.

Let me seek to serve the poor, the sad and those unable to work.

Help me to discern honestly my own gifts

  that I may do the things of which I am capable,

  and happily and humbly leave the rest to others.

Above all, remind me constantly

  that I have nothing

     except what you give me,

  and can do nothing

     except what you enable me to do.

Jacob Boehme, 1575 – 1624, German Lutheran mystic, theologian and shoemaker

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Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.