June 20, 2022 DESIGEND TO PRODUCE
Genesis 2:15 “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and keep it.”
Proverbs 6:6-8 “Got to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest.”
Genesis 2:2 “And on the seventh day ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made.”
Colossians 3:23 “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord and not for people,”
In this article is somewhat a departure from than normal; I will relate some of my own observations of our culture regarding creativity and being producers-and I trust that what I share is in keeping with God’s word. I will say up front that we are not called to be workaholics and our work is not to be an escape and we are not to find our identity in our work. From observation, it is evident that a good work ethic that has been a crucial part of our culture, but it seems that the work ethic has diminished in recent times. I suppose that there is no one reason why the over-all work ethic is in decline, but I do think we can identify a couple of the reasons. One culprit is the advent of the personal, hand held iPhone that practically every individual owns. Certainly there are many great benefits that come with hand held computers and iPads; however, there are several downsides. One is that there is much corrupt and downgrading information and images available to all at the touch of the keyboard. It is a fact that what we take in to our brains-and our spirits-is crucially important. Also, it seems that we can easily become consumed with information-even with information we do not need. (I find that I may check the weather forecast three or four times a day!) Many have found their world ‘on line,’ and that is a serious problem for sure; we are becoming isolated individuals. Anyway, much could be said here, but all of this does lead to a place where many consider work a necessary evil. Some blame can be placed on the polices of government where able bodied individuals are paid while they are not working. (There is value in properly administered unemployment benefits.) Another culprit that robs us is the seemingly never-ending desire for entertainment. That’s enough of looking at the problems. The good news is that we can recover, or regain a proper work ethic, and we can rediscover the value of living according to our design; and we can find that work done with the right motivation brings a sense of satisfaction. We are crated in the image of God-and certainly God was and is creative and productive. God instructed Adam and Eve, before the fall, to ‘work and keep the garden.’ God put within us a desire to achieve, to create, and to overcome. Our enemy, if allowed, will corrupt and cause us to live contrary to our basic design and will get us to try to fulfill our basic God-given desires in a way that brings death instead of life. Think about it-what are the implications of being made in the image of God, and what fulfills our deepest longings as His created beings? We find answers to these questions in the word of God; if we are looking elsewhere, we will never find the answers we are looking for. Work is a broad term; work may entail working for a company, working for yourself in some trade, or it may be visiting the sick, helping those in need, or whatever. And, God gives you creative ways to be good at whatever work you are about. This may seem a little strange, but just the other day after I had worked strenuously all day in the hot weather, I came in, showered up, and my wife and I went out to get a bite to eat. As we were walking out to the car after eating, I had a definite sense or feeling really good about what I had accomplished that day. I think that that feeling good about what had been accomplished that day is what is many are missing in our culture. Again, work or productivity itself is not the answer nor should it be the ultimate goal; what matters is living according to how God has made us; we are created to know God as our Father and to be overcomers in this life, displaying the character of God.
Psalm 90:17 “May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us-yes, establish the work of our hands.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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