And after the fall God cursed work....
Or at least that is how those of us in the West tend to look at it. Fortunately for us this was never God's intention. In fact I believe just the opposite, that work is a source of joy and strength. Labor is the fruit of walking with God and caring for His people. Below, I wrote a one line statement that sums up my thoughts, The harder I work the more fun I have.
For most this statement is absurd. Work for the American is merely a means to an end, a way to support a lifestyle. What I would suggest is that our work is where the character of private lifestyle is revealed. Katie and I are asked rather frequently why we don't receive support as missionaries living here in the city, my response is usually this, why should anyone receive support if they are physically able to work. The idea of brokering breadcrumbs for the advancement of the Gospel is ridiculous. The ability to work is a gift and to live off the work of others is a slap in the face to the one who gave the gift.
God created work for the enjoyment of man; he gave him dominion over the land, to take care of the land and animals, to walk with God in His work of creation. When man fell into sin, only man was cursed with the sweat of his brow and the land was cursed with thorns and thistles, the idea of work was still to commune with the Almighty.
As a child I learned the value of hard work, at an early age I was out on the farm working the garden, mowing the lawn, chopping trees. This ethic of hard work served a dual purpose, at face value it gave me the tools I needed to advance quickly and work circles around those I worked with. On a much deeper level, I now realize, although I didn't at the time, that I was learning the way of God and at a very early age I was introduced to His will for all mankind.
The welfare system exists today because we have learned that God cursed work therefore the joy of God cannot be found in it. We have been shaped by the thought of retirement and a sense of entitlement that is not found in the scripture. I fully believe that God has been at work since the beginning of time and has not thoughts of retirement. Where did we get the idea that working hard for 35 years gives one the right to search the beach for seashells for the final 30 years of life? I agree with Piper when he calls the idea of retirement the greatest tragedy of modern American consumerism.
I believe that the call of this generation is to begin to redeem the value and the joy of hard work. Our community of faith is entrenched in the Joy of work everyday. Together we will take great risks and see great results, but this will never come without the sweat equity of hard work. Without work knowledge and education is futile. The right to set at the table doesn't come from your pedigree or papers it comes from one's willingness to roll up his sleeves and get dirty. That is where we find a great communion with the Joy of God.
Though I try, I cannot come close to describing the joy of sweating and "tilling the soil" with my brothers in the simple pursuit of what God has placed before us. The harder I work the more fun I have, doesn't fit with the American psyche, but then most things of God won't fit in our neat little boxes of entitlement. When we learn that God himself, wanting to walk in communion with us is the greatest gift we realize that work isn't a means to an end, it is simply a lifestyle of Worship.
Over the past few weeks I have been asked many times, what is my dream? I can answer that today without thoughts of grandeur or lofty pursuits. My dream is to work. To serve God, to serve man, to serve my wife, my children. To pursue what has been placed before me regardless of what it is. My dream is to experience the abundance and joy of the Kingdom. My dream is to work harder and have more fun.
