Everyday Glory in an Exhausted World
Albert Bogle
August 19, 2026
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Everyday Glory in an Exhausted World
Albert Bogle reflects on the pressures of modern work and how it doesn’t reflect God’s vision of true work.
In a recent observation published in The Times, the evangelist J. John noted that modern Britain has become "a nation full of exhausted people searching for hope." No doubt, his words reflect something of the truth felt by many on a Monday morning. Our relationship with work is often characterised by moments of stressful disinterest — which often begs the question: Why on earth am I working in this job at all? We worry about endless to-do lists, battle with backlogs, and carry the weight of expectations of difficult clients, or managers until work feels less like a calling and more like a treadmill. What is true for the corporate and industrial world, I am sorry to say is often true for those who are paid or employed by the church.
Yet, work was never intended to be a sentence of exhaustion. The Bible teaches us that work is God’s way of bringing restoration and hope into our lives. Here at Sanctuary First over the years we have been influenced by the thinking and theology of the Celtic Christians of the third and fourth centuries. When we study the Celtic Christian tradition, we discover a radically different vision of daily life.
The Celtic Christians saw no wall separating the "sacred" Sunday service from the "secular" Monday morning routine of life. To them, the presence of God was as real relaxing by the fire, or walking behind a plow, or using the washbasin — these were all touching places for worship and prayer. Every routine task was an opportunity to encounter the goodness of the Almighty, and every daily duty held the potential for holy creativity.
In my Daily Worship posts this coming week I will explore how we can find a new freedom in our places of work and see them as callings and expressions of worship to God our creator and redeemer.
Over my week of reflections I want to invite you to rediscover ‘Everyday Glory’ — the realisation that the work of your hands can become a source of inspiration, purpose, and renewal rather than a driver for burnout. When our work is rooted in our true identity as God’s beloved, we discover that rest, alongside being renewed by a godly creativity, changes our whole perspective. Work ceases to be a paradigm for exhaustion. Instead, it becomes a space where hope is discovered, shared, and experienced, as we see people, places, and communities being transformed. It is my prayer that together this week we will all encounter Everyday Glory!
Albert Bogle
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