Work

Mark 2:23-24

      Have you ever been part of an organization that has some stupid rules? Or wondered, why in the world do we do it this way? I have had both in my life. And I am someone who speaks up when ‘stupid’ rules the day. Especially since returning from Iraq, my ‘stupid meter’ gets pushed easily. I want to know why I am being asked to do something, and the explanation had better make sense. The activity must support the mission we are on, or my mouth will speak up.

      It seems that some Pharisees, religious leaders and ultimate rule-keepers, were following Jesus one day. For a Pharisee to be walking on the Sabbath, going somewhere, it meant that they were only half a mile from their homes or city limits. We don’t know why the Pharisee is traveling with Jesus. Could he have been a curious man, wanting to check out what Jesus was saying and doing for himself? Was he sent on a mission to spy on Jesus, gathering information that could be used against him? We don’t know. All we know is that he observes something.

      What does this Pharisee see? He sees the disciples picking some grain from the heads of some plants in a field. The activity of harvesting was of course in the category of work. And of course you were not allowed to work on the Sabbath. This is the conflict for these Pharisees. They see Jesus condoning His disciple’s work, a prohibited activity.

      Leaders bear responsibility for the behavior of those who follow them. This is true for us, and it was true for leaders in Jesus’ day. So Jesus is asked to give an account for the behavior of His followers.

      Mark wants us to hear Jesus creating new definitions for some traditional activities. He has redefined fasting as something done at a time when celebration is not happening. Fasting has a much more limited role in our lives than it did in the religious people of Jesus’ day. So also the rules about the Sabbath and what can and can’t be done.

      If you love rules and keeping them, then being a Jesus-follower will be difficult. Jesus calls us to follow, to listen to His voice and leading. There are very few rules for Followers. This makes some people very nervous. They look at someone’s behavior and get on edge. They view the activity with suspicion and even judge the behavior as evil. They get caught in the judging game, just like the Pharisee did. Not the most pleasant way to live. We are called to freedom, freedom from sin and freedom to obedience.

Good Hunger

Proverbs 16:26

      Hunger can be a good thing. Of course this is easy for me to say since I just finished my bowl of cereal and fresh pineapple. But hunger can motivate some people to figure out how to earn a living.

      I heard an NPR news story yesterday about a man who started serving gourmet food from a food truck. His money was drying up and he was getting desperate. A friend had the idea and the jumped on it. Now they own a fleet of food trucks and he is a celebrated chef. Hunger can make you move.

      Of course, most of us don’t experience the kind of hunger like that written about in our proverb. We don’t live with absolutely no reserve. We don’t earn our money today and then use up all that we earned on today’s meals. But that is exactly what our proverb is talking about. Today’s pay pays for today’s food. Nothing left over. If you don’t go to work tomorrow, no food.

      I think sometimes we need more of this kind of hunger. This hunger motivates to movement. For some, public assistance prevents them from being productive. It takes away their incentive. I said, for some! They are truly needy people, unable to do anything. And now our society is structured in a way that makes gainful employment very difficult for some.

      I remember being hungry. We would make a meal from one box of Mac ‘N Cheese and a hotdog for two adults and two small kids. Rent was in danger of not being paid, let alone paid on time. Utilities within days of being shut off. Hunger was just around the corner, and I was the one responsible to provide. I was motivated to work.

      Some call the system we have Toxic Charity. It appears on the surface to be the right thing to do, but in the end it poisons those who receive it.

      I don’t have solutions for our current dilemma. Our local church is doing some creative things to take back the church’s proper role in helping the poor. Some provide employment for individuals. Transitional housing, drug rehab and vocational training, life basics, personal involvement. Each of these, and many more, restore dignity to the process. We help, but not enable. We walk with them without carrying them.

A Check With Dignity

Proverbs 15:25

      One of the consistent themes of the Scriptures is that the LORD is concerned for the least in society, those who can’t take care of themselves. The widows and orphans are often highlighted. The assumption is that everyone else can take care of themselves. They can earn enough money to survive. Maybe they can’t drive an Escalade or have 200 channels of cable TV, but they can survive.

      Two things are very different in our day than in the time of the writer of the Proverbs. The first is that family took care of family. Neighbors looked out for each other. There was a sense of community that pulled people together in times of need. When someone needed something, others would pitch together and make it happen. The Amish do this all the time. A barn burns down, and without the help of an insurance check, the community shows up and rebuilds the barn.

      This sense of community meant that no one starved if anyone had extra. They were in it together. So when the Proverb says that the LORD sets the boundary stone of the widow, he is saying that the LORD is part of that caring, supporting, protecting community. The full faith and credit of heaven is there to protect the widow’s inheritance.

      The second thing that is different is that everyone worked. There were only a few categories of those that received: widows and orphans. Everyone else was expected to do something. Even the crippled could do something. During the Great Depression the help that was given was connected to work. People wanted to work. Their dignity was connected to doing something. They didn’t want a handout.

      By contrast, today, we have many people who don’t want to do anything, and they expect to be supported. They want to sit around and complain. They are capable of doing something, but they choose to do nothing. They could volunteer to read books to school children. They could serve food at the homeless shelters. Thousands of organizations are desperate for volunteers. They are getting paid something by the government, why not give them the dignity of work, work that can give them some reason to get up in the morning.

      Now there is a very small percentage of people who truly can’t do anything. They are so crippled that they can’t even lick the stamps on a church’s Christmas card mailing. We can support them. It should be the Church that supports the widows and the orphans, not the government. The government does a really poor job at this. In the past, the Church did this, and did it with dignity. Perhaps it is time to get back to this.

Cutting Grass

Proverbs 14:23-24

      Part of what made America great was the value placed on hard work. Right or wrong theologically, hard work has paid off for generations of our ancestors. Even today, hard work is a good thing.

      We have a young man aged 13 who cuts the grass at our house. He makes about $100 a month for what he does. So subtract gas and wear and tear on his equipment, he makes about $10 an hour. Not bad for a 13 year old. And he is happy to get the money. And I am happy to pay him! Talking with his parents, they are instilling in him two important values: the value of work and the value of money. This young man could teach lots of people a lesson. He is learning self-respect, responsibility, and a whole host of other things at the same time.

      In contrast to this young man I hear of so many who just want to sit on their hands and do nothing, and of course get paid for it. They want to talk big things, but when it comes to putting their legs into motion, that is a different story.

      It sounds like us, sometimes, in our Christian walk. We talk about prayer, but do we really pray? We talk about caring for the poor, but do we? We talk about the value of Scripture in our lives, but do we honor it by reading and studying it? Mere talk gets us nowhere. Action is what counts.

      The old saying, “Put up or shut up” comes to mind. Either live the Christian life or don’t. Don’t talk about it and then live some other way. That is folly. And the more folly, the more folly. Folly breads folly.

      I am always wary of someone who does too much talking about what they are doing. Let the actions speak for themselves. I think that is why I could never be a politician. Part of their job is to talk about what they are doing, even if they aren’t doing it. We recognize that politicians are full of hot air, don’t we? How hot is our air?

      Wealth is measure more in who we are than what we own. Character counts more than collateral, integrity more than investments, eternity more than equity. Wisdom always makes a profit. Whatever we do, we need to do it as unto the LORD, and not to me. Hard work unto the LORD is profitable, even if our paycheck doesn’t reflect the effort expended.

Tornado

Proverbs 10:22-25

There is a blessing that comes to those who are obedient to the LORD. This is not an automatic ticket to worldly wealth, but a path to enough. We are not talking about the 500+ million dollar lottery jackpot winner from last week. For most lottery winners, the money ends up being a curse.

When the LORD blesses good things happen. We read of those who received God’s blessing like Abraham who became very wealthy, but kept a humble spirit. I consider myself a wealthy man. I have a roof over my head. Air conditioning when I need it. Food to nourish my body. Family and friends to journey with. Fruitful interactions with others. What more could I want?

By contrast the wicked create schemes to try to get rich. Instead of obedience, the wicked try to get over on the system. Honest work just won’t satisfy. Watch out for people who are always looking for the new angle. There are a thousand other schemers ready to sell them some “guaranteed” way to get rich, secure their future, invest in real estate, beat the stock market, learn the insider secrets…. They make their money off selling you their “secret” not by using their method.

Verses 24 & 25 talk about the fear factor. When we aren’t trusting the LORD we are trusting someone or something else. There is no firmer ground to stand on than the LORD. He will never let you down. He has unlimited perspective. He knows what will happen tomorrow, so He is able to guide and direct in ways that avoid disasters that can’t be used for His glory.

This of course does not mean that bad things don’t happen to those who are obedient. We live in a fallen world and bad things can happen to everyone. But even in the worst circumstances the righteous have a confidence in Him. They are not abandoned. Even death has lost its dread.

So when a storm hits you, keep looking up. It may feel as if you are alone, but He is right there, walking beside you, feeling your hurt and pain. If you ever doubt it, remember the Cross.