"... 'I am engaged in a great work so I can't come. Why should I stop working to come and meet with you?'" (Nehemiah 6:3, NLT). "... [Yes], establish the work of our hands!" (Psalm 90:17, ESV). "[Also] that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil--this is God's gift to man" (Eccl. 3:13, ESV).
"In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty" (Prov. 14:23, ESV).
"Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might..." (Eccl. 9:10, ESV).
"Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need" (Eph. 4:28, ESV).
Do you see yourself as being assigned by God to do a "great work" just like Nehemiah did? How you interpret your duty as a lot to say about your mission in life. Do you have a mission statement as an individual? We may have goals, which may or may not be accomplished, but we need a purpose in life to fulfill what God has called us to do. Jobs don't last, but missions do! I'm sure you've heard of the three bricklayers who were asked what they were doing: One said he was laying bricks; another said he was making so-and-so much, but the one with divine viewpoint said he was building a cathedral. Do you see yourself as a man on a mission?
St. Francis of Assisi was asked what he would do if he only had one hour to live: he'd finish the row he was gardening! He knew what God wanted for him and was ready to meet his Maker. Have you ever heard of Brother Lawrence, who was a monk in a Carmelite monastery in France in the seventeenth century? He practiced the presence of God all day by keeping the dialogue open in prayer, no matter what his hands were doing, even washing dishes.
Nehemiah was a great motivator, who is chronicled as the man behind the rebuilding of the wall in Jerusalem in 52 days--a work of God! He praised the people for their hard and dedicated work, and said, "the people had a mind to work" (Neh. 4:6). You could say, as the NLT does, that "they worked with enthusiasm." This is a problem today (even if we retire, we never retire from the Lord's work!), because the lazy are often rewarded equal to the hard-working, and the good-old-Protestant-work ethic is fading and people are not trying to see how much they can produce or contribute, but how much they can get or receive from society.
As a for instance, in 1607 Jamestown, Captain John Smith had a similar dilemma, where the so-called upper classes didn't see fit to work, and he quoted 2 Thess. 3:10, that says, "If a man doesn't want to work, he shall not eat." We all have a duty to contribute to society, and no one is incapable of it, it is even possible for the disabled to do something, and make their mark on society.
God has blessed us with the pleasure of work, whereby we exhibit the image of God, for even Jesus worked and Adam did before the Fall. We can find fulfillment in our work but must be careful not to make it our life--we need a work ethic, but we need a life too! Solomon said that your work and your food and drink are blessings from God and we are meant to enjoy them (cf. Eccl. 3:13). It seems unfair to work all your life and have your fortune left to others, but you must not see yourself as serving mammon, but God, not building a kingdom, but being in one!
Your purpose will last on after death, no matter who gets the fruits, and the most important thing you can leave is a legacy, not money--something bigger than you because it isn't all about you. It is more important to have an impact and be somebody that God uses than to be a nobody with riches. Einstein said that we shouldn't strive to be a success but to be persons of value. I will mention in passing the wise words of Mother Teresa (now canonized): "God doesn't call us to success, but to faithfulness."
A good work ethic entails doing our best, as unto the Lord (cf. Col. 3:17, 23) and finding the work God wants for us; for we are all called to and designed for something--don't make your God out to be too small, but bigger than your tasks, seeing divine purpose in everything ("Whatsoever you do..."). We are not called to be workaholics, but to do what God has assigned and to finish that work, just as Jesus said, "I have finished the work thou has given me to do" (cf. John 17:4). Some people try to get away with as little as possible and only work for themselves. Actually, the greater we are, the more people we serve, not how many serve us. We are to get the servant's heart and orientate ourselves to being God's slave and bond-servant.
It is key to have the mindset of Christ's servant or what Paul said in Romans 15:18 (NIV): "I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me...." (The NKJV says, "For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ has not accomplished through me....") In the same vein or framework of mind and viewpoint Isaiah said, "All that we have done, you have accomplished through us" (cf. Isaiah 26:12). We are only vessels of honor being used by God and God will reward what He does through us!
In conclusion, let me demonstrate how orientation affects you: Remember the song: "I'm working for the man...." To illustrate: One athlete said he was a team player; another that he was the best on the team; another that he was on God's team! Are you God's dishwasher, a member of the union, or only the best dishwasher, as it were? Be God's man doing His work! We are not just called to pursue a job, but to labor in the name of the Lord, doing His divine work, according to our ability. We are all laborers harvesting in the Lord's fields. Soli Deo Gloria!
"In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty" (Prov. 14:23, ESV).
"Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might..." (Eccl. 9:10, ESV).
"Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need" (Eph. 4:28, ESV).
Do you see yourself as being assigned by God to do a "great work" just like Nehemiah did? How you interpret your duty as a lot to say about your mission in life. Do you have a mission statement as an individual? We may have goals, which may or may not be accomplished, but we need a purpose in life to fulfill what God has called us to do. Jobs don't last, but missions do! I'm sure you've heard of the three bricklayers who were asked what they were doing: One said he was laying bricks; another said he was making so-and-so much, but the one with divine viewpoint said he was building a cathedral. Do you see yourself as a man on a mission?
St. Francis of Assisi was asked what he would do if he only had one hour to live: he'd finish the row he was gardening! He knew what God wanted for him and was ready to meet his Maker. Have you ever heard of Brother Lawrence, who was a monk in a Carmelite monastery in France in the seventeenth century? He practiced the presence of God all day by keeping the dialogue open in prayer, no matter what his hands were doing, even washing dishes.
Nehemiah was a great motivator, who is chronicled as the man behind the rebuilding of the wall in Jerusalem in 52 days--a work of God! He praised the people for their hard and dedicated work, and said, "the people had a mind to work" (Neh. 4:6). You could say, as the NLT does, that "they worked with enthusiasm." This is a problem today (even if we retire, we never retire from the Lord's work!), because the lazy are often rewarded equal to the hard-working, and the good-old-Protestant-work ethic is fading and people are not trying to see how much they can produce or contribute, but how much they can get or receive from society.
As a for instance, in 1607 Jamestown, Captain John Smith had a similar dilemma, where the so-called upper classes didn't see fit to work, and he quoted 2 Thess. 3:10, that says, "If a man doesn't want to work, he shall not eat." We all have a duty to contribute to society, and no one is incapable of it, it is even possible for the disabled to do something, and make their mark on society.
God has blessed us with the pleasure of work, whereby we exhibit the image of God, for even Jesus worked and Adam did before the Fall. We can find fulfillment in our work but must be careful not to make it our life--we need a work ethic, but we need a life too! Solomon said that your work and your food and drink are blessings from God and we are meant to enjoy them (cf. Eccl. 3:13). It seems unfair to work all your life and have your fortune left to others, but you must not see yourself as serving mammon, but God, not building a kingdom, but being in one!
Your purpose will last on after death, no matter who gets the fruits, and the most important thing you can leave is a legacy, not money--something bigger than you because it isn't all about you. It is more important to have an impact and be somebody that God uses than to be a nobody with riches. Einstein said that we shouldn't strive to be a success but to be persons of value. I will mention in passing the wise words of Mother Teresa (now canonized): "God doesn't call us to success, but to faithfulness."
A good work ethic entails doing our best, as unto the Lord (cf. Col. 3:17, 23) and finding the work God wants for us; for we are all called to and designed for something--don't make your God out to be too small, but bigger than your tasks, seeing divine purpose in everything ("Whatsoever you do..."). We are not called to be workaholics, but to do what God has assigned and to finish that work, just as Jesus said, "I have finished the work thou has given me to do" (cf. John 17:4). Some people try to get away with as little as possible and only work for themselves. Actually, the greater we are, the more people we serve, not how many serve us. We are to get the servant's heart and orientate ourselves to being God's slave and bond-servant.
It is key to have the mindset of Christ's servant or what Paul said in Romans 15:18 (NIV): "I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me...." (The NKJV says, "For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ has not accomplished through me....") In the same vein or framework of mind and viewpoint Isaiah said, "All that we have done, you have accomplished through us" (cf. Isaiah 26:12). We are only vessels of honor being used by God and God will reward what He does through us!
In conclusion, let me demonstrate how orientation affects you: Remember the song: "I'm working for the man...." To illustrate: One athlete said he was a team player; another that he was the best on the team; another that he was on God's team! Are you God's dishwasher, a member of the union, or only the best dishwasher, as it were? Be God's man doing His work! We are not just called to pursue a job, but to labor in the name of the Lord, doing His divine work, according to our ability. We are all laborers harvesting in the Lord's fields. Soli Deo Gloria!
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