Hard Work
It doesn't matter if you're swinging a hammer, or crunching numbers on a 10 key. At the end of the day, all hard work is completed by the sweat of our brows. Some days are easy, while others drain us completely. Some days let us sleep in, while others never let us rest. Regardless, hard work in one form or another is a part of life. It's always there, haunting, relentless, and wanting more. No, this isn't an epidemic, or an act of terrorism, it's the result of one man's sin. God said to Adam, "
Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'you must not eat of it.' Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil, you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return (Genesis 3:17-20)." I don't know if you picked up on the undertone from that, but hard work isn't going away any time soon. Not including the commute to and from work, or all the time spent preparing for and settling down from work, the average American male puts in approximately 50 hours per week. That's more than any other industrialized country in the world. The bottom line is that work, on average, consumes approximately 60 percent of our waken life. All that work can take a serious toll from us physically, emotionally, and even spiritually. That is, if we don't manage it correctly. For this reason our time in the word and before the Lord, on a daily basis, is vital in order that we may "
Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us (1st Peter 2:12)." We are God's ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20), given to the ministry of reconciliation (2nd Corinthians 5:18), and it is God's will "
that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men (1st Peter 2:15)." I know that some days challenge us more than others, and bending a knee seems no easier than bending over backwards, at least not until you do it. Paul wrote to the Philippian believers, "
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7)." He said the peace of God… will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. This is why we pray. This is why we spend time in the word. Because, it develops a relationship with the One who gives us the strength we need to persevere under the daily grind of life. "Hard work" is the front-page story on every day's News Paper. It was the forecast from yesterday's weather report, and the only horoscope to come true in our astrology readings, "All signs will work hard this week." Really? That’s not foreknowledge, that’s hindsight based on thousands of years of human history. The good news is that the labor in our day doesn't define us; rather, it’s 'how' we labor through our day that defines us. When we, through our prayer and study, strive to be of the character that Christ gave us through example (1st Peter 2:21), no matter the circumstance (Philippians 1:27), we define ourselves as living proof of God's rest for a weary world. Now, instead of depleting our physical, emotional, and spiritual reserves, we deposit in ourselves strength, perseverance, faith, hope, and love, all gleaned from God's promises. Again, the key is not to let hard work define us; rather, through the sweat of our brow, we should paint our own portrait, which is nothing less than a masterpiece of God's work in our lives.
[mp]
Copyright © 2004
Michael D'Urbano
All rights reserved
www.modernpapyrus.org
If you don't know Jesus Christ as your Lord and God, or maybe you just need to rededicate you life to Him; I encourage you to click
HERE and pray this simple prayer. Do not allow another moment of your life to pass without knowing the love and peace that comes with knowing Jesus Christ as your personal savior.
