I know what it’s like to work in ways that drain you down to your bones. Ways that make you feel weary when you put your head on the pillow at night and fill your mind with restless thoughts. Ways that pull you away from the people you love most and make you think your worth is based on your performance.
And I know what it’s like to work in ways that fill you up down to your soul. Ways that make you feel energized and alive even when it means getting up early and putting in a long day. Ways that make you feel more connected to God, those around you, and the core of who you are.
All kinds of work are not created equal. Because one kind is man-made and the other is God-given
God created the first human and placed him in Eden to “work it and take care of it.”
But the fall happened. Afterward King Solomon described work in this world as, “toil and anxious striving.”
Then Jesus came. The changes he brought to our hearts are meant to the work of our hands. That means we can rediscover what work was originally intended to be.
Work and taking care {Eden} are about being faithful with what God has entrusted to us and doing so with love.
Toil and anxious striving {our own strength} are about trying to advance ourselves and being most concerned about what happens to us.
Work and taking care mean ultimately trusting God for the results.
Toil and anxious striving mean living like we must make everything happen ourselves.
Work and taking care mean what we do is about relationships — with God, each other, ourselves, and whatever our hands touch in our work.
Toil and anxious striving mean what we do is about using those around us and what’s in front of us for our own purposes.
Work and taking care have an end and lead to rest.
Toil and anxious striving leaving us feeling as if it’s never enough.
Your work is not supposed to wear you out. Yes, you will get tired and sometimes frustrated. You will have battles to fight. You will sometimes need to do things you don’t want to do at all. But work is not supposed to feel like a hole in your heart that is draining away who you are one drop at a time.
If it feels that way, something is wrong. Because God created work as a gift meant to fill us up and bring us satisfaction.
And by work I don’t just mean a job–I mean whatever you do from day to day.
I sat down this morning with a journal and made a list with two columns: What’s Working Well and What I’ve Learned From {I first wrote What’s Not Working Well for the second column but changed it because all experiences can teach us something}. I filled that page up and picked two things I wanted to do more of {just two not twelve}.
I do this from time to time because I know my heart has a tendency to drift. You may be a focused, faithful worker. I’m more likely to be “toil and anxious striver.” And if I don’t intentionally choose not to live that way, I’ll go right back to old habits. I’ve learned I can do the very same task in two very different ways. Because it’s not about what you do, it’s about how and why you do it.
I’ve got a feeling it’s gonna take a lifetime to really figure this out.
I’m still working on it.
Sherrie Ashcraft, Women's Ministry Director
sherrieashcraft@gmail.com 971-285-6699
