In today’s cutthroat competitive environment, to get ahead at work, culture tells us you must arrive early and leave late.
Leadership gurus nowadays teach this as a sign of good work ethic. They advise that it is guaranteed to give you the edge over those vying for your position and/or to gain you the promotion you so much desire.
We make ourselves do more and work harder to achieve our goals, as a result.
Work burnout has become a major common issue as a result, and organisations are doing all they can to combat it by having different Employee Assistance Programmes that care for their workforce’s well-being.
Human nature is such that it has to overstretch itself to obtain its means. There is no other way. Life works for those who work themselves. It is the survival of the fittest – a primitive jungle out there.
But, it was not so at the beginning.
We were not created to be 'self-made men or women' - self-sufficient, independent, autonomous.
We were created to depend on God for our means.
God gave us our amazing talents, gifts, skills and abilities that enable us to achieve great things in all fields of learning, art and industry, but they are only optimized to the degree that we lean on and look to Him.
If He truly is the Source of our lives and as such the Designer of our destiny, then He knows how to get the very best out of us so that we achieve our full potential eventually.
And so, in His great and variable Wisdom, He instituted the Sabbath!
It seems like a contradiction to work.
Sabbath means
‘day of rest’
Taking time out after a busy season, a completed project, or a heavy schedule does us more good than we think.
Taking a break is an Act of Worship!
It demonstrates our dependence on God for our sustenance, and not on the sweat of our own brow or autonomous effort.
When we finish a task or a season, we should take a break. In doing so we can focus on God and thank Him for all He has so generously lavished on us, and rest from our labour.
When there was intensive labour required of God, there was an instruction (command) to rest afterwards. Bezalel was a very gifted and skilled man called to carry out a specific and strategic project. However, note we that right after his commissioning, the command to observe the Sabbath was highlighted.
Rest is Holy!
According to God, leisure time is not wasted time. Recreation is a Blessed time. It is a time of RESToration. Restoration happens ONLY when and as we REST.
Definitions of Restoration include:
The act of restoring something to a former or original condition
The reinstatement of a previous practice, right, or situation
The return of something, especially something lost or stolen to its proper owner
The action or process of regaining peace, possession or control of something
The (usually gradual) return to health
An instant, state or period of rest, relaxation or enjoyment
The action or process of releasing or being released
Building again to restore the previous form, structure, or state
A recompense or reparation.
We can deduce from this that God is WORKING while we REST. Therefore, we can rest from our work, our striving, our stressing and our pressing.
The Key is to trust and depend on the One who created us, knows us, sees us and will provide for us, as we listen and obey His instructions for each day and each season of our lives.
Just like the Christ-mas Season…
Christmas is a time of rest and reflection at Advent,
and then fellowship, family and feasting
as We Celebrate the Glorious Life Jesus has Come to Give!!
It is the time we remember the Promise, the Plan and the Purpose of Jesus' Birth and Life.
And, We Celebrate!!
Have a Wonderful and Restful Christmas Season...
From
All of Us at Workers Aflame!
And the Peace of God,
which transcends all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds
in Christ Jesus.
Phil. 4:7 NIV
