Thursday: Work and Stewardship
“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might” (Eccles: 9:10). The wisest of men uses these words of counsel regarding stewardship in every aspect of life.
When asked to comment on Christian stewardship, many confine their thoughts to the Christian’s fiscal responsibility. Although money is certainly an important aspect of stewardship, to limit it to money alone is much too narrow.
Image © Krieg Barrie from GoodSalt.com
In organizational theory stewardship refers to management’s responsibility to develop and utilize properly all available resources.
In the church, what are the resources with which God has blessed us? Peter clearly states that every person has gifts endowed by the Creator; and he refers to such endowed Christians as a “holy priesthood” (1 Pet: 2:5) with responsibility to God for their stewardship of all of God’s gifts: money, time, energy, talent, and others.
Read Ecclesiastes 9:10 and 1 Corinthians 10:31. What is the message to us in these verses about how we should work and how we should educate people to work?
One of the common pitfalls of life today is the tendency to compartmentalize the different aspects of living. There is one’s work life, one’s family life, one’s spiritual life, and even one’s leisure life. The tendency to separate these areas of life so there is little or no crossover between and among them is to be desired in some instances. For example, it is not good to bring home one’s work so that it interferes with family responsibilities. Neither should the pursuit of leisure curtail the time we spend with God.
However, such restriction should not apply to the role our spiritual life must play in all of our existence. The Christian’s work grows out of fellowship and work with God. Work is one way by which we can practice the presence of God. To compartmentalize our religious life, to limit God to one day, one hour, or even just one area of living, is to reject the very presence of God in these other areas.
| Two questions: First, ask yourself if you do, indeed, compartmentalize your spiritual life. Second, if you do, how can you learn to let spirituality reign in all that you do? |
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For most of us, work comprises a fairly large chunk of our time. And further, a fair bit of our education contributes both directly and indirectly to our ability to do our work. I was reminded as I read the lesson this week, how often as an educator I had been involved in discussions with students about careers. Most young people have a focus on how much a job pays, and that is fair enough. They have been typically supported by their parents and want a job so they can be independent.
Typical discussions would nearly always turn to job satisfaction. And sometimes it took a little while to convince a student that their choice was not going to lead to satisfaction. As educators and parents, we owe it to our young people to have that sort of discussion. My father talked me out of wanting to be a minister - I wanted to "finish the Lord's work". It took a few weeks for the idea to work its way into my little grey cells, but ultimately it made sense and I saw that I would have made a terrible minister.
Job satisfaction in more than just having a good time at work. In the context of this lesson, it enhances your opportunity to integrate your spirituality with your work. Work becomes a natural extension of your spirituality, providing the opportunity to:
[I have travelled to Queensland in the last couple of days so have been unable to comment much this week. The state borders have been opened and we are allowed to travel interstate again. We have not seen Carmel's aging parents for 12 months and they were desperate for a visit.]
Apology accepted Maurice!
Balance in everything. I think that beyond the work with all our strenght/wisdom, we should remember to always give thanks for everything, including our troubles!
The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. Ps 23:1
Work and Stewardship
The integration of work and stewardship is what I always did. I realized like many others that after a good night rest, my angel wake me up and I set out to pray and study my bible so I can gain fresh wisdom, knowledge and understanding for the day. Cant relied on yesterday strength and understanding.
At work I do witnessing to people. We talk about everything about the task at hand and equate them to the love of Jesus and encourage others to pray. Relying on Jesus for answers to difficult situations and people. People are becoming more and more difficult to deal and cope with.
I talk out loud to myself purposely to give God praise. People will ask me if I am talking to them but because I knew they are listening I say things like- thank you Jesus for today, thanks for helping me, thanks for keeping me in my right mind, etc. I sing or hum spiritual songs. Some people only want prayers when their backs are against the wall.
Before eating I offer a thank you prayer for the food and the great giver of the food.
The bible says the Lord decides who to give one, two, three or more talents. He gave us just what we can handle. Some people have one and not even using it to its potential but always look at others and 'wish' they had that one from someone else.
I must acknowledge the Lord gave me several talents. One is my full time and part time job. Another one I realized I had from an early age, develop it and it can bring in some extra part time finance. Yet another talent is what I prayed about and allow the Lord to guide me into, it has to do with some form of investment. Another talent that I am working on as my retirement project is the creation of a website (have it but slacking up because of taking care of other people problems/situations. Bible says- whatsoever our hands finds to do, do with all our might. Eccles 9:10.
I say to people I seldom sit and look at TV with all those things going on. Sabbath is the most I sit for rest with my creator and in front of TV for church or spiritual vocation.
The more I use my talents, the more I can find another one popping up that I never knew existed. I also like cooking and decorating for home and for functions on a larger scale. I see beauty in all that we are given from our Creator in the use of our time, talents, opportunities and means.
Yes, our work will be examined. Solomon writes that we will be judged on “every work...and every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil”(Eccl 12:13,14). Jesus taught that “every idle word” will be examined in this judgment which none will escape. Every word and every action has influence, and these are how we express our true thoughts and feelings. So, our entire stewardship will be examined by the One who sees and knows all.
The standard of this judgment will be God's “commandments, statutes, and laws”(Gen 26:5). We are to live/work/teach in the fear and obedience of God. Whether we do this faithfully is to be the focus of our self-examination(2 Cor 13:5).
For the final question today:
What does Jesus teach? See: Matt 11:28-30; 16:24.
I do believe you are right. Now thank God we have an advocate. 1John 2:1. Thank God we forever have an intercessor Hebrews 7:25. And thank God he will take away our filthy garments and clothe us with His righteousness. Zechariah 3:3-4.
Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and was standing before the Angel [of the Lord]. And He spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And He said to [Joshua], Behold, I have caused your iniquity to pass from you, and I will clothe you with rich apparel.
Zechariah 3:3-4.
Now that does not mean we go on sinning absolutely not. Romans 6:1-2.
Here is what we do through Jesus Christ.
We renounce our disgraceful ways (secret thoughts, feelings, desires and underhandedness, the methods and arts that men hide through shame); we refuse to deal craftily (to practice trickery and cunning) or to adulterate or handle dishonestly the Word of God, but we state the truth openly (clearly and candidly). And so we commend ourselves in the sight and presence of God to every man's conscience.
2 Corinthians 4:2.
I believe in a hill called mount calvary...and when time has surrendered and earth is no more I'll still cling to the old rugged Cross.
I have been baptized of the water and the Spirit. I have fought a good fight. I have put on the wedding garment. Hence forth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, because I love for and yearn for His return. 2Timothy 4:8.
What I am seeing today is that our young people are compartmentalizing their lives. I have the perception that the young people feel it's appropriate and okay to do what they want as long as they attend church on Sabbath, participate in service activities, sing in the choir...Once Sabbath is over they go to a friend's house and party. I actually heard a teenager say that it was okay to party as long as no one told the pastor! There is outward compliance with the law and rules but at the stroke of sundown on Saturday night they are free for the next 6 days.
I think of Daniel 1:8 and the phrase "purposed in his heart".This is stewardship in its purest sense. Daniel knew that not only his heart belonged to God, but his body, mind, and emotion. Thus, he practiced whole person stewardship and God rewarded his faithfulness with achievement, the trust of several foreign kings, and awesome angel protection.
The website https://www.gotquestions.org/biblical-stewardship.html succinctly stated my belief about stewardship:
"Stewardship defines our practical obedience in the administration of everything under our control, everything entrusted to us. It is the consecration of one’s self and possessions to God’s service. Stewardship acknowledges in practice that we do not have the right of control over ourselves or our property—God has that control. It means as stewards of God we are managers of that which belongs to God, and we are under His constant authority as we administer His affairs. Faithful stewardship means that we fully acknowledge we are not our own but belong to Christ, the Lord, who gave Himself for us."
So, this morning, it behooves me to reflect on my own stewardship and evaluate where I am disconnected from God, and what impact does that have on my "fruit"?!
How do we educate people to work? Stop paying them to not work. How to work comes intuitively when they are hungry, no teaching necessary. If they are employed but underperforming, they should be fired. Being fired from a job is a real educational experience, at least it is for most.
Back in 2010, I received a national award for achievement for my work in public safety. When I returned to my office after the awards ceremony, my colleagues greeted me with congratulatory pats on the back. Thanking my assembled co-workers, and in response to their praise, I could only say, “I pray every day for God to bless my work, and he did!”
I love this reminder about how compartmentalizing our time works in some areas of life but not in spirituality. The field of education is coming to that conclusion as well, with many methods using a more blended model; instead of having separate class periods for science, language arts, music, etc. the day is more fluid, recognizing that all of those typical subjects can be integrated while learning. I remember teaching a unit on Ellis Island, for example. I tapped into foreign language, journal writing, social studies and so forth to help students reenact the experience of coming to America.
The psalms are a constant reminder to me of spirituality all day long and in every situation. God was clearly the gravitational center in David's life - and in the lives of the other poets who wrote the psalms. They worshiped all day long. They prayed all day long. They are longing for God (Psalm 42:1-2), laying out their lives before Him in the morning (Psalm 5:3) and dreaming of God at night (Psalm 63:6). We get a sense of urgency and hunger for God. They gave God all their emotions and all their attention. They didn't leave God behind when a bell rang and it was time to switch class (to use the typical high school experience as analogy). There were no activities to resume once you are done praying. Everything in their lives they acknowledged as being related to God. Communing with God WAS their central activity. David and the psalmists prayed without stopping (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
As I'm making a big pot of soup and meditating more about today's lesson this comes to me....
The RESULTS of our stewardship actions can't be compartmentalized either. For example, I'm making this soup to share with a friend having heart issues. I'm popping a lot of vegetables into it. Thinking about her health I also think of our planet's health. We know that a "plant-rich diet will ease our collective impact on the environment by reducing the amount of forested land that is converted to animal agriculture and the consumption of critical water and other natural resources". I'm thinking of animal health and well-being as well. Our diet also impacts the world hunger situation and the most economically needy people in the world. Here is another quote I just found online: "If all crops were used exclusively for direct human consumption, it would increase available food calories by 70%, which would mean that an additional 4 billion people could be fed. This means that with a purely plant-based diet more than 10 billion people could be fed using existing agricultural land."
I'm sharing this not to try to change anyone's dietary habits - I myself use some organic, locally cared for animal products - but to ponder how everything, even our daily food choices, our clothing choices, all of our consumption choices, reflect upon our role as stewards of this planet; it's all interconnected. We show our love by how we respect and cherish every living being populating our Father's world (and nonliving too).
Here are some beautiful stewardship texts: Genesis 1:26-28; Leviticus 25:2-5,11; Proverbs 12:10; Romans 15:2.
1Cor.10:31KJV expresses the spiritual Truth about work in a nutshell: “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. The fruit of the Spirit edifies and effects everything it touches constructively; the Spirit of this world does the opposite, it de-structs; it is so subtle that we might not notice it, but like leaven, it effects negatively everything it comes in contact with.
I asked myself: What enables me to live a godly life, what comes before godly living, what motivates me to live my life in the Way of God’s Truth and Love? Where was I when the Lord found me? What was my life like then and how has He changed it? How are my works different now compared to how they were then? The answer: I became aware of my responsibility to be a good steward of the life God gave me, to not live it any longer in ignorance and selfish pursuits but live it unto His Honor and Glory.
When I decided to put my love for God and His commandments first, I realized the life-shaking depth and greatness of my Salvation which brought me from death into life, that I am now able to love without being loved first, that I can be His faithful witness because it is Christ who strengtheneth me, that I can turn the other cheek and not care whether man considerers me to be a fool; that I am being lovingly watched over during this perilous time as my mind and heart is being transformed from selfishness to selflessness.
To be able to honor my Heavenly Father, He taught me to safeguard my love for Him with all my heart and soul and to trust HIM with my care; to be vigilant and not place anything else between us so He can form in me the new heart and mind that works for His Honor and Glory – to be able to happily bloom where He plants me.
God has given the followship of faithful believers the Scriptures to live an edified life – 2Tim.3:16,17KJV – “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect(perfected), thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”
I believe that this will establish true stewardship and prepare us to engage in the type of stewardship-living which will honor and glorify our Father above!
Maurice, I take it that your visit entailed work to travel plus all that you have done in Queensland. That seems to me to be work and stewardship which no doubt had some pleasure so we see that work & stewardship can be a blessing . The 3 weeks I spent taking care of mother before she died was physically tiring but I cherish that time . It deepened my spiritual life.
Indeed a happy, but busy visit. I am spending most of my time updating their electronic devices.
The illustration for today reminds me that I should not lock up my heart - my love for the LORD - to only reveal it on special occasions! It is to be used everyday in every way.
working for God inside the church. is one way to help us keep the connection special in time of pandemic. the department of prayer, the children department, the music, the ofering the health department, the media department. we should create jobs in each local church to make sure every one is connected it. for the glory of God