Do Not Bow to Your Own Busyness
Reading the guests who came to Avraham as hurrying merchants, the Shinover warned against making an idol of our own effort.
When Avraham invited his guests to wash the dust from their feet, the Shinover saw more than hospitality. He read the travellers as merchants who were always on the move, raising dust as they went in search of customers, and he understood the dust of their feet as the object of their devotion: they bowed to their own busyness. They credited tireless effort and initiative for their living and forgot the One who gives it. Avraham answered with an invitation to wash, to stop, and to rest beneath the tree, which the Rebbe read as resting under Hashem’s protection and support. A person may work hard, but he should work knowing where success truly comes from, and not measure his worth by how frantic his days appear.
Source: Divrei Yechezkel, Vayeira (on Bereishis 18:4)
Choose one stretch of today, even twenty minutes, and set your tasks aside on purpose. Before you begin it, say quietly that your livelihood and your success come from Hashem and not only from your effort. Then work, or rest, from that calm. If you notice yourself wearing your schedule like a medal, ask what the hurry is really for. Doing your part fully while trusting Him with the outcome is the balance Avraham offered his guests, and it is available to you at your own desk or table.