Monday, April 14, 2014
Work. What comes to mind
when I say that word? How do you view your work?
Many
of us are under the impression that God required us to work after the fall in
the Garden of Eden. We may be living under the perception that work is
punishment. We may see it as a necessary evil. How might this perception of
work affect our attitude about work?Work is NOT a necessary evil. God created us to work. He created us to work BEFORE Adam and Eve bit into the apple. After God created the earth and all that is therein, he placed us in charge of caring for it all. That is our work.
Our work is the action of taking care of
things that God has entrusted us with. With that definition of work, how might our thinking about work change? If work is the action of taking care of things, how can we flip our thinking about work? What does the “action of taking care of things” include? Work is the action of taking care of a lot of things: our home, our relationships, our children, our bodies, our social life, and the job we do for pay. Work is a whole host of things we do and involves the bigger picture of who we are. Work IS more than a job; it’s a lot of jobs, a lot of actions! Not only is work the action we do on a job, but it’s also the actions we do in everything that God has entrusted us with.
Our work is our relationship with everyone and everything that God has
entrusted us with.
With
this definition in mind, look at what this verse in Colossians says about how
we approach our work.
·
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the
Lord, not for human masters. Colossians 3:23 (NIV)
Work
as if we are working for the Lord. This means in all aspects of work, in all of
our jobs.
When God created the
world, he created work. When God created us, he created for specific work, a
specific purpose. We are designed to make an impact on the world in everything
we think, feel, say, and do. Our work is the action we use to accomplish our
purpose. Our paying job is one way we work. Everything else we do is a part of
our work too. We are to do all of it as if we are doing it for the Lord.
It is our responsibility
to determine who we are in him, what our God-given purpose is and what the work
is we’ve been given. Galatians 6:4 tells us, "Make a careful exploration
of who you are and the work you've been given." (The Message)
As
we think about our work, let us explore who we are and the work we’ve been
given to do. Let us pay careful attention to our God-given purpose and how we
live in our purpose whether we are working at our paying job or working in all
other aspects of our lives.
·
Commit your works to the Lord and
your plans will be established. Proverbs 16:3 (NASB)
