Apostle Paul is setting an example, and he wanted to be a role model to the people that he was serving and ministering to. He was setting a culture of hard work.

He did not depend on the ministry and on the favor of people all the time. Christians sometimes get into a very comfortable mode of receiving from people, but the Bible says “it is more blessed to give than to receive.”

Giving to God and to the people is a more blessed thing than to constantly be in a place of receiving from the people around us. If we need to be a giver, it may need for us to be a hard working person. The giving can be in different levels (financial, bringing a word from the Lord, etc.)

It is very easy for people to expect from us or to receive something from us, and it may not require as much effort, but when somebody is willing to give to us, it shows that person is willing to work hard and is willing to put a lot of effort behind that one thing that she/he is doing.

The above verse (Acts 20:34) is a testimony of Apostle Paul that he was not selfish in taking care of himself but was selfless and self-sacrificing making sure that everybody around him also will experience the blessing of what his hands were doing with.

We should be excellent in our work. In doing so, we are not just going to bless ourselves but we are also going to bless the people around us and the more we are intentional about our work and the fact that God has given us that work, the more we will see the blessing out of it.

May God give us excellence in every area of our work.