A Thought For The Week Of September 3

"What does the worker gain from his toil?" (Ecclesiastes 3:9) On Labour Day, perhaps we should consider the value of work. Too often, we get caught up in issues of labour-management disagreements, but surely there's something to be said for getting away from that ongoing battle every now and then and simply recognizing the value of work (or "toil" as Ecclesiastes calls it) recognizing that all "toil" - when you get down to it - is godly. I'm not big on the so-called "Protestant work ethic," because I think that tends to hold up "work" as an end in itself, and too easily leads to a works-righteousness. The work we do (the toil in which we engage) isn't an end, nor on its own does it make us righteous, but it is yet another way of glorifying God, which should always be our goal in whatever we do. All of us (whether a CEO or lawyer, whether we're the one who washes the buses or sweeps the floor, whether teachers or - dare I say it - pastors) are playing a part in society, and this part we play gives us the chance to honour and witness to God. As Christians, we should be respecting one another's toil, and understanding that whatever parts we find ourselves playing at any given time, we're equal in God's sight and we're all valuable and loved parts of God's creation - and we should treat each other accordingly. Too often, perhaps, we set ourselves up in competition with each other rather than seeing ourselves in partnership. Perhaps we think of one person as more important than another because their job has more prestige or a bigger salary. Perhaps we've lost the understanding of "work" itself as a calling (as something we're called by God to do the best we can at for as long as we're doing it) rather than just a job that we resent or that we use merely for our own ends. Ecclesiastes tells us to "... eat and drink, and find satisfaction in [our] toil - [for] this is the gift of God." This implies that we should all have enough to "eat and drink," and to find satisfaction in what we're doing now and to do the best we can at it (even if it isn't our "dream job") is to understand that we all belong to God. Have a great week!