Your Money and Your Life #5: The Character Foundation, Work Fair

The last post laid open the question of why getting rich quick can be troubling. I think this next one is a pretty important reason why getting rich quick is a dangerous temptation. We may be tempted to hurt others, oppressing others to get ahead.

Proverbs 13:23 The fallow ground of the poor would yield much food, but it is swept away through injustice.

Proverbs is hard on the lazy, and rightfully so. The wisdom writers let them know that the lazy deserve their poverty. But texts like the one above show this is not exclusively the case. Some are poor because they have been treated unjustly by people in positions of power. The wicked are wealthy in Proverbs at times, and it is dangerous. Here’s likely why … the wicked are more prone to oppress than the righteous.

Whatever fortune you’re building, make sure you work fairly. You may not run a sweatshop, but how do you treat your employees? Do you lead with humility, and more important to this sub-point, do you treat your employees well, with respect and fairness?

God has stern warnings for those who oppress. Work fair.

Your Money and Your Life #4: The Character Foundation, Work Hard

The last post dealt with humility. God gives us the ability to earn what we earn. We owe God much when it comes to our wealth. It is very much a gift from Him. Now we look at the flip-side of the coin when it comes to the character that can bear wealth well. We need to work hard.

Proverbs 10:4 A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.

This is a good time to note the nature of Proverbs. They aren’t iron-clad, true-in-every-circumstance promises. They are general truths to live by which means there could be some overlap and tension at time between proverbs. It isn’t that they are contradictory, but that they are general wisdom to applied differently in different situations.

In this case, Proverbs is generally clear. Hard workers are generally rich; the lazy are generally poor. We get in a “get-rich-quick” society. Think lottery and frivolous lawsuits. But that can be a problem. It is admittedly anecdotal, but I’ve heard the lottery destroys lives in many cases. This, too, aligns with Proverbs…

Proverbs 13:11 Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.

Why is this? Why is hastily gained wealth sometimes problematic? I think there are a couple reasons. First, I think part of it is that personal character isn’t built to carry the wealth well. The humility, righteousness, and hard work are not in place to carry the burden of wealth well. The next post will have another reason why getting rich quick is a dangerous temptation.

But for now, why do you think getting rich quick can be dangerous?

Sabbatical #18: Happy (Belated) Father's Day!

Happy Belated Father’s Day to any who might be checking today. I had a good time with my dad and brother – we went out to Thai food. Before that I went to my dad’s house and we put pavers in. We’re having a family reunion in a couple weeks. I think more than anything my dad taught me how to work. It wasn’t always fun, but it something I am incredibly thankful for now.

My form of work has changed significantly, however. I was reminded of this by the work I did with my dad yesterday … pavers. I don’t think I’ve ever been this sore the day after anything like I am today. Last night I couldn’t dial my cell phone without much effort – thumbs shaking, and everything. I’m totally worn out, but it was a joy to work hard with my hands, something I rarely do now.

At the same time, it isn’t anything I want to do day in and day out. But I am thankful for all the people who work hard with their hands. It is a proud part of my heritage and we couldn’t live without them.

I hope you had a good time with your dads and were able to honor them.

Whistle While You Work #13: God Will Reward

On this last “work” post, we see the final way we can whistle while we work – despite the challenges – is to remember that we will be rewarded by God, our ultimate boss, for the good we do.

Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free. (Ephesians 6:7-8)

That’s in the context of a slave-master relationship. And Paul says God will see the good you do. If you do good, regardless of your circumstances, God will one day reward it. It may not show up on your paycheck, but it doesn’t escape God’s attention. Nothing you do – not one thing – is meaningless. How much more is the sacrifice when you’re in a difficult situation in your job? You may have to love someone who mistreats you. If you remember from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus calls us to love our enemies. God won’t look past this. He’ll notice, and reward you.

When the grind of your job has made you crazy with boredom or frustration, keep at it. God will reward your faithfulness. It may not be on this side of the grave, but He will remember. He takes care of His people.

“Your supervisor may think you are a nobody, or he may not even know you exist. That doesn’t matter. The Lord knows you exist, and he is going to reward you on the same terms as the most famous Christian. There is no partiality with God (1 Peter 1:17). ‘Whether slave or free,’ your good is recorded and rewarded.” (John Piper - A Godward Life 177-178)

God won’t forget the good you do, even if nobody else notices. Your reward will be great. Whistle while you work. Your work matters to God. It is meaningful.

How does the thought that you work for God and He’ll reward the good you’ll do make a difference in your attitude at work?

Whistle While You Work #12: God's Your Boss

Last post looked at us as being co-creators with God. While we are co-creators with God, partners, we have to understand that it isn’t an equal partnership. He’s the boss. And we’re working for Him.

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. (Colossians 3:23-24)

Your boss isn’t your ultimate boss. God is. You work for Him. Is that compelling at all to you? It should be.

Think if the President of the United States (regardless of your political perspective) called you to be the official “whatever you do.” Official mechanic of the President, official dentist of the President, official cashier of the President. It doesn’t matter the job. That would be an amazing honor, wouldn’t it? Even if you weren’t thrilled about what you do, it would be incredibly honoring. It would infuse what you do with meaning. It would give you a reason to whistle while you work.

You’re living better than that. You are the official homemaker of the God of all creation. The official bus driver of the King of Kings. The official builder of the Lord of Lords. You aren’t where you are by accident. God has you there, at least for now, to serve Him. To work for Him. He is your boss. You work for Him. How’s that for an honor!? Serve your King well – and with joy! You’ve been chosen!

Whistle While You Work #11: Created to Create

The last several “work” posts were about loving our neighbor through our work. Now we’re looking at how our work matters to God. Sometimes we may be tempted to think of the Garden of Eden as something like an extended vacation kind of like a resort. Adam & Eve would hop in the lake, swim to the floating bar, take a nap, and generally loaf. As good as that sounds, it’s not so. It is true that the toil and frustration of work is due to the fall of Adam and Eve in Genesis 3, but Genesis 1-2 are clear that they were to work the garden before any sin entered into our world.

The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. (Genesis 2.15)

God created the universe “very good,” but He didn’t create a garden that was 100% complete. It was good, but God created a world in which we are partners as His image bearers. We don’t do it from nothing like He did, but we create nonetheless.

We do it because we are created to be like God, we’re created in His image. Dorothy Sayers once wrote: “Man, made in God’s image, should make things, as God makes them, for the sake of doing well a thing that is well worth doing” (Working: Its Meaning and Its Limits, p. 43). The opening chapters of Genesis show us God is real, He is powerful, and He is creative. Our creativity is one expression of us being like God – and it is partnership with Him – as His stewards.

Think about that. Talk about value. You are being used of God to make this world, where people experience who God is and His goodness, a better place. As history moves forward, work has been used to make this world a better place, when the creativity is used well. The wheel. The printing press. Medicine. Electricity. The computer. These things are expressions, through the work of people, of what is called God’s common grace. It is grace extended to all people regardless of whether they follow God or not. It doesn’t save, but it is an expression of God’s goodness and generosity to all people.

Thank God for good engineers who build bridges and airplanes that we can see more of God’s world, or stay close to family that lives far away. And it isn’t just functionality. God uses people to stir hearts by creating musical instruments or drama and film that inspires and challenges people, giving an echo of God’s beauty and creativity. More simply, God gave us these “taste buds” on our tongues. Thank God for ice cream and tri-tip that we might enjoy the goodness of God in such a simple way. The world is a better place as we create within God’s creation, particularly when people responsibly enjoy God’s goodness.

Whistle while you work! Your work matters. You’re partnering with God in making His goodness known to people.

Whistle While You Work #10: Love Your Neighbor, Work Well and Faithfully

I guess you could say I have a kind of posting ADD. I get doing other stuff, including preparing for sabbatical for the month of June (plus a few days in July), and my blogging fades to almost nothing. Anyhow, here’s the continuation of the work series: “Whistle While You Work” from my sermon more than a month ago. This is the last installment of how you love your neighbor with your work. It starts with a story, not sure if it is true or not, called “The Keeper of the Spring”…

There was once a quiet forest dweller who lived high above an Austrian village along the eastern slopes of the Alps. The old gentleman had been hired by the young town council to clear away the debris from the pools of water up in the mountain crevices that fed the lovely spring flowing through their town. With faithful, silent regularity, he patrolled the hills, removing the leaves and branches, and wiped away the silt that would otherwise choke and contaminate the fresh flow of water. By and by, the village became a popular attraction for vacations. Graceful swans floated along the crystal clear spring, the millwheels of various businesses located near the water turned day and night, farm lands were naturally irrigated, and the view from restaurants was picturesque beyond description.

Years passed. One evening the town council met for its semi-annual meeting. As they reviewed the budget, one man’s eye caught the salary figure being paid the obscure keeper of the spring. Said the keeper of the purse, “Who is the old man? Why do we keep him year after year? No one ever sees him. For all we know the strange ranger of the hills is doing us no good. He isn’t necessary any longer.” By a unanimous vote, they dispensed the old man’s services.

For several weeks nothing changed. By early autumn the trees began to shed their leaves. Small branches snapped off and fell into the pools, hindering the rushing flow of sparkling water. One afternoon someone noticed a slight yellowish-brown tint in the spring. A couple days later the water was much darker. Within another week, a slimy film covered sections of the water along the banks and a foul odor was soon detected. The millwheels moved slower, some finally ground to a halt. Swans left as did the tourists. Clammy fingers of disease and sickness reached deeply into the
village.

Quickly, the embarrassed council called a special meeting. Realizing their gross error in judgment, they hired back the old keeper of the spring … and within a few weeks the veritable river of life began to clear up. The wheels started to turn, and new life returned to the hamlet in the Alps once again.

You love your neighbor by doing your job faithfully. Whether you see it or not, or whether others appreciate you or not doesn’t matter. Doing your job well and faithfully is a legitimate and basic way to love your neighbor.

We know the counselor or doctor makes our lives better. Same with the police officer or teacher. Soldiers and firemen, too. But the trash man makes my world better, too. Really. Imagine the world without him – and we have diapers! I don’t know many farmers, but how thankful should we be for them? More thankful than I am, that’s for sure. I’m grateful for the scientists who come up with pain relief from the range of Advil for sore knees to numbing my body for surgery. McDonald’s may not be the dream job for many (or any) of us, but what a gift for a quick bite to eat when we’re in a rush (just don’t Super-Size Me!). You get the idea. (There’s an excerpt of The Road to Wigan Pier by George Orwell in Working: Its Meaning and Its Limits edited by Meilaender that does a great job in pointing out the value of coal miners).

Whistle while you work because your work is a way for you to honor God by fulfilling the second commandment…

35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" 37 And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets." – Matthew 22:35-40

How has God used your work for the good of your neighbor, or how are you challenged to do a better job of using your work to honor Him?

Whistle While You Work #9: Love Your Neighbor Through Integrity

As we continue loving our neighbor through our work, the next way is loving your neighbor – doing unto them as you’d like them to do unto you – not before they do it to you. This, too, applies to the world of commerce. I’m out of my element when it comes to business and profit, particularly when it comes to the global impact of economies and the like. But, biblically, profit is not universally evil. It puts some value on the time and effort we put in to something. Furthermore, the Virtuous Woman of Proverbs 31 is commended for her ability to turn a profit.

She sees that her trading is profitable, (Prov. 31.18)

But this area is also where we can be tempted by all kinds of evil (1 Tim. 6.10) in our love for money. When you’re establishing your profit margins, keep in mind that Golden Rule.

Loving your neighbor means fighting greed in your own life and oppression of others. That may mean not taking unfair advantage of superior knowledge or hoarding a scarce or vital resource and then price gouging (gas prices, anyone?).

With corporate scandals as prominent as they seem to be these days, Christians should be leading the charge and setting the bar high (any more clichés to add?) when it comes to integrity in the work place.

Whistle while you work because, when you work with integrity, you are obeying Jesus by loving your neighbor – even if they are your competitor/enemy.

What are the most significant challenges to living with integrity in your work world?

Work Site

I was tooling around Mark D. Roberts' blog the other day and he had a link to a site about the high value God puts on our work. Enjoy.

http://www.thehighcalling.org/

Whistle While You Work #8: Generosity

We’re continuing on how to love our neighbor through our work. We’re still on the provisional end of things. This isn’t so much who to provide for, but more to be a generous person. God hasn’t blessed us to horde our stuff. He’s blessed us that we might be a blessing to others.

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. – 1 Timothy 6.17-19

We’re to love our neighbor by being generous people, generally, and caring for them in particular when their need is great. How generous should the people of God be, knowing how generous God has been to us? That’s rhetorical, by the way.

For those concerned about the “Prosperity” stuff several posts ago, this puts some kind of “cap” on accruing stuff for our own enjoyment. We need to be denying ourselves to a certain degree if we’re going to be generous to others and the poor.

This also brings us to generosity for those who are fulfilling God’s purposes around the world. Abraham was blessed by God to be a blessing to the nations (Gen. 12.1-3). The psalmist asked for God’s blessings on Israel, not that Israel would horde, but that God would be known among the nations.

May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us, 2 that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. – Psalm 67.1-2

Use your resources to support a missionary a little extra from your church (the Allans are heading to Cambodia from Cypress), or give to a Faith Promise fund or missions fund your church offers, and don’t forget Jane’s House and their ministry in India (see previous post).

How has your work enabled you to be generous to others? To those serving around the world to make Christ known?

Whistle While You Work #7: Provide for the Poor Locally and Globally

We’re still on loving our neighbors through our work. Now we move to a more traditional idea of loving our neighbor. Caring for the poor in this case.

He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. – Ephesians 4.28

Don’t just work to quit stealing. That’s good. That honors God. Paul’s talking about more than just pulling our own weight. We’re to work to “get” so we can “give.” The end goal isn’t self-provision. It is self-provision plus others’ provision. Jesus was pretty clear on how important it is to take care of the poor.

"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' 37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' – Matthew 25:34-40

Look for local opportunities to give to the poor. It could be the guy on the street corner, if God so leads. But it could also be a mission, or some organization that helps people get on their feet with more long-term assistance and training. Whatever you do, it is clear God wants us to bless the poor through our work.

In Southern California, our church runs a ministry called Campaign for Care that provides blankets for the homeless and we have boxes up for people to donate items to the missions. We also support Faith In Christ Ministries, which is a church that reaches out to the suffering in South LA. If you want to expand caring for the poor to the world, I have a friend who started his own organization that currently trains pastors and evangelizes in India and, most importantly for this point, provides for 30 or so orphans. For more information, check out this website: http://janeshouse.org/

How do you use your work to provide for the poor in your area? What are good ministries in your area that others might be aware of them (be sure to tell us the area)?

Whistle As You Work #6: Providing for Your Family

As we look at loving our neighbor through our work, we need to look first at who our neighbor is. The Good Samaritan in Luke’s gospel answers the question – if a Samaritan could be an ancient Jew’s neighbor, anyone is a neighbor. Let’s start with those neighbors who actually live with us. Our family.

Your family is the first neighbor you can love through your work. You love them by providing for them – the same way you provided for yourself.

But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God. … If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. – 1 Timothy 5.4, 8

In this case we’re talking about providing for your parents, in this case a widow. That’s your responsibility (see also Mark 7).

While we’re looking primarily at material provision so far, this I think would be a primary contribution of those who aren’t “breadwinners,” but who are the stay at home parent. And it shouldn’t be understated. My wife “works” a couple part-time jobs to help materially, but there’s no measure to be put on the role she plays in shaping the lives of our girls. It’s value is inestimable.

We ought to whistle as we work because, whether it is provision through punching the clock, or being unpaid in the job that you never clock out of, our work provides for our families, our first neighbors. How do you love your family through your work?

Whistle While You Work #5: Loving Your Neighbor

The last few posts have dealt with how our work is beneficial to ourselves, personally. I’m sure, if God is at work in your life, you were wondering when we’d get outside ourselves to using our job to bless others. Now is that time, though we know we usually derive much personal joy from doing good to others. These next several posts were, in the sermon, under the second point: "Whistle! Your Work Matters for Your Neighbor!"

One of the things I found most exciting when studying for this series, in the formative stages and when it came time for me to preach. Calvin and Luther apparently didn’t care much whether you were self-fulfilled in your work (see Vocation by Schuurman). You could hate your job, but you were called by God in that job, whether you liked it or not, to love your neighbor. Work was a key venue for loving your neighbor in Reformation times.

Before we begin the posts on how you love your neighbor, have you ever thought of loving your neighbor as an important reason for your work? How do you see yourself loving your neighbor in your work?

Whistle While You Work #4: Subduing the Flesh

This is the last section on "Whistle! Your Work Matters for You!," which is the first point in "Whistle While You Work" - the sermon, or series of blog posts. This is a little more abstract, or at least less tangible than the previous two posts - your job providing needs and wants in a material way. This one has to do with how work can be used, if we let it, to subdue our flesh, making us more like Christ. This came from a book my friend Keith loaned me for sermon prep called The Other Six Days by R. Paul Stevens. It was a helpful book, but on this point he pretty much lets Bonhoeffer make the point on "the therapeutic value of work":

Work plunges men into the world of things. The Christian steps out of the world of brotherly encounter into the world of impersonal things, the ‘it’; and this new encounter frees him [or her] for objectivity; for the ‘it’-world is only an instrument in the hand of God for the purification of Christians from all self-centeredness and self-seeking. The work of the world can be done only where a person forgets himself [or herself], where he loses himself in a cause, in reality, the task, the ‘it’. In work the Christian learns to allow himself to be limited by the task, and thus for him the work becomes a remedy against the indolence and sloth of the flesh. The passions of the flesh die in the world of things. But this can happen only where the Christian breaks through the ‘it’ to the ‘Thou’, which is God, who bids him work and makes that work a means of liberation from himself. (from Life Together).

If I understand this correctly, work will, if we let it, take us out of ourselves and focus us on something external. This is valuable because we can spend so much time thinking about ourselves and feeding our flesh, our selfishness. When we put our hand to the task, we take our focus off our selves and, if we let it, God will use this to make us less "fleshly," less selfish, less self-focused.

I can honestly say that during my warehouse forklift days I remember spending a bunch of time while I was at work seething with contempt for my job. But there were plenty of times where I was focused on the task at hand, which means I wasn't focused on myself. I wish I would have used that time better. In ministry I can honestly say the work has never been incredibly frustrating. It is enjoyable, but there have been peripheral matters that have weighed heavily and made me focus on my dissatisfaction. I guess this is a huge benefit of loving what you do. You can get lost in your work easier if you enjoy the task.

This is an interesting perspective on work. Do you think this is a valuable insight by Bonhoeffer? How do you think it works? How has it worked for you?

Next: "Whistle! Your Work Matters for Your Neighbor!"

Whistle While You Work #3: Prosperity

We're still looking at the personal blessings of our work. This is still point #1 ("Whistle! Your Work Matters for You!) in my message "Whistle While You Work." Last post talked about our basic needs being met in work, which we’re all grateful for, but the fact of the matter is, we’ve been blessed in the good old USA and for the vast majority of us, our work provides for much more than our needs, doesn’t it? Whether we’re rich or not by American standards, we’re certainly rich by world standards. And guess what. That’s OK.

The blessing of the LORD brings wealth, and he adds no trouble to it (Prov. 10.22).

Now I know that isn’t universal. There’s much poverty and suffering in the world, but Paul makes it clear in 1 Tim. 6.17-19 that, while we shouldn’t put hope in wealth, all things are provided for our enjoyment. It is good and right to enjoy God’s blessings.

Wealth isn’t dismissed in Scripture as evil – loving money is the root of all kinds of evil, but not wealth in and of itself. In fact, God told Israel not to be proud in their wealth as they entered the Land because it wasn’t their doing it was God’s, though they would live in abundance.

You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today (Deut. 8:17-18).

We don’t live in the “Promised Land,” though we have been blessed and it is no less from God. All our relative wealth – cars with AC and CD players (standard), owning a large or multiple homes (maybe ownership at all!), movie tickets, flat screens, eating out, closets full of clothes, baseball tickets, various collectables, etc… are a gift from God that comes by means of work. So whistle at work. It paid for your Disneyland passes.

Now, just as you thought about the basic provisions you’re thankful for, take some time to reflect on the unnecessary blessings God has given you through your work.

Whistle While You Work #2: Basic Provision

I delivered the “Whistle While You Work” sermon this morning. It went pretty well, I think. I know a few people were encouraged, one who was feeling discouraged in what he does and another who loves his job. In my last “work” post I talked about the fact that self-fulfillment in work is great for those who have jobs they love.

But this pleasure in our work need not be elusive for those who don’t love their jobs. The next several posts will talk about reasons our jobs are worthy of enjoying. Why we can “whistle while we work.” They all flow from the idea that our work is meaningful, even if not fun. The hope is that meaning becomes more important than “fun,” and we truly enjoy that what we are doing is valuable.

So the next couple posts (and the last one as well) are the self-interested side of work – how it benefits us. The point in the sermon was: Whistle! Your Work Matters for You! Self-fulfillment is the first sub-point (even though I used it as the introduction), that your “job” is more than a job, it is a calling. But on a more “material” level, your work also provides for your basic needs. That's the focus of this sub-point.

I know there are exceptions for those who are unable or without a job, but for the most part God provides through means. Means come, for most of us, through our jobs, our work. I know this isn’t rocket science, but shirts don’t make themselves. Someone worked to make them, and you work to purchase them – or whoever gave you that shirt for Christmas did.

Scripture is clear that work provides for the most basic needs. In 2 Thess. 3.10 Paul says if a man won’t work, he shouldn’t eat. So, while this isn’t the most romantic of reasons to love your work, you can love it because it paid for your dinner.

What basic provisions do you have to be thankful for that are a result of your work?

Whistle While You Work #1: Self-fulfillment

I'm preaching a sermon on Sunday in our series, God @ Work. My sermon is "Whistle While You Work," focusing on how to have a good attitude at work. The first section (with several subpoints) focuses on the personal benefit from work. The first way to do that is the joy that some people have of doing precisely what they think God has created them for. I'll use a clip from Chariots of Fire for introduction - where Eric Liddel talks about how God made him fast and he needs to run to honor God. A biblical example would be Oholiab and Bezalel (Exodus 31:1-11) who were particularly gifted by God to do the job He appointed them to do. Is this you?

Exodus 31:1 The LORD said to Moses, 2 "See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, 3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, 4 to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, 5 in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft. 6 And behold, I have appointed with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. And I have given to all able men ability, that they may make all that I have commanded you: 7 the tent of meeting, and the ark of the testimony, and the mercy seat that is on it, and all the furnishings of the tent, 8 the table and its utensils, and the pure lampstand with all its utensils, and the altar of incense, 9 and the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the basin and its stand, 10 and the finely worked garments, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments of his sons, for their service as priests, 11 and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense for the Holy Place. According to all that I have commanded you, they shall do."

Don't get me wrong, I think we need to have balance in life, particularly that we shouldn't be workaholics. "Fulfillment" at work doesn't mean neglect at home or anywhere else is acceptable. How much does "fulfillment" fit in to what you do at work? In a perfect world, what would you be doing that would be ultimately fulfilling for you as a job - so it would be more than a job, but a calling?

Whistling While You Work

This coming Sunday I'm doing the next installment of our "God At Work" series. I'm doing "attitude at work," titled "Whistle While You Work." I won't give away what I think I'll share. (I say "think" because getting into a text often challenges my pre-conceived notions of it.) But any help would be appreciated.

What helps you keep a positive attitude at work?