September 1, 2008
Labor
Day
Even though we don't use the day to
celebrate labor any more, just the name of the day got me thinking on the
subject. What do we labor for?
God created us to labor. He knew that
work was an important part of our makeup, but he also recognized that too much
work isn't a good thing either.
"Remember
the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your
work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not
do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or
maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days
the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but
he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and
made it holy.
Exodus 20:8-11 NIV
King Solomon, struggled with that issue
of the meaning of our labors. He was a man who had seen it all, done it all and
owned it all.
What
does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun? Generations
come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the
sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and
turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All
streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams
come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can
say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What
has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing
new under the sun.
Ecclesiastes 1:3-9 NIV
While the writer starts out sound like
he believes work is valueless, when we read on, we find out that's not the case
at all. Later in the same book we some of his conclusions.
Then
I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find
satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God
has given him--for this is his lot. Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and
possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in
his work--this is a gift of God. He seldom reflects on the days of his life,
because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.
Ecclesiastes 5:18-20 NIV
To work (in whatever form that takes),
is a gift from God. When you faced whatever work you must accomplish today, did
you look at it as a gift from God or as a chore to be done? I confess that far
too often I've looked at work from the wrong perspective. As I read the wise
mans words, I was called to do a little repenting about my attitude.
All work has value. It needn't be paid
employment. Volunteer work is valuable. Work at home for the family has value.
Just caring for people is work and has value. The work God has given us is His
gift to us. It's only people who make the distinction between
"important" and "unimportant" work. It doesn't matter if
you're a teacher, a preacher, a doctor, a housewife, a laborer or a skilled
tradesperson. Your work is a gift from God and is therefore valued in His eyes.
Whatever our work, we're called to do
it to the best of our abilities for the sake of God.
Whatever
you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men,
since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.
It is the Lord Christ you are serving.
Colossians 3:23-24 NIV
Celebrate your labors today. They are a
gift from God and the way you do them can be a gift to God.
Until next time, rejoice in your labor.
Be
blessed
Darrel
Mason