“Nothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labor. This also, I saw, was from the hand of God.” (Ecclesiastes 2:24)

Call it tough love. God’s tough love.

If you don’t work, you don’t eat.

   “For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat.” (2 Thessalonians 3:10)

And it all started in the Garden of Eden:

    “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.” (Genesis 2:15)

Working with our hands and minds is all part of God’s blueprint and purpose for our lives.

Faith in God plus Labor = Success = Prosperity = A blessing to others.

We are rewarded through our labor because God wants us to be successful as we keep our mind on Him:

     “In everything he did he had great success, because the Lord  was with him.” (1 Samuel 18:14)

God wants us to be prosperous:

    “But remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which He swore to your ancestors, as it is today.” (Deuteronomy 8:18)

God wants us to use our labor as wage-earners to be a blessing to others in need:

    “Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him.” (Proverbs 14:31)

God does not want us to be, well, lazy:

     “The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.” (Proverbs 13:4)

America is in Great Distress

Our country’s Judeo-Christian values and work ethics are quickly being eroded by a nationwide Nanny State belief system where government wants to take care of us from cradle to grave.

Our new government health-care mandate actually rewards you through subsidies for doing less, not more, work.

The lower your income, the higher your subsidy.  It kills the incentive to work to succeed.

It’s a counter-productive system that feeds on itself.  The more you are dependent on government to take care of you, the less you see the need to take care of yourself.

(Do read this revealing study by Dr. Robert Rector and Rachel Sheffield, “Understanding Poverty in the United States: Surprising Facts About America’s Poor”).

Unfortunately, it has given rise to an entitlement society.

But before you get your feathers ruffled, I am not advocating doing away with social programs such as food stamps (an $80 billion-a-year government program that costs twice what it did just five years ago) and welfare.

I am advocating doing away with the deep fraud that costs taxpayers billions of dollars annually, and doing away with the notion that government programs are a substitute for hard work.

Marijuana Makes the Problem Worse

Now that recreational use of marijuana has been legalized in Colorado, a new form of welfare abuse has surfaced: The use of EBT (Electronic Benefit Transfer) cards to purchase pot.

Colorado issues its EBT in the form of a Quest card.

While some argue that safeguards are in place to prevent food stamp cards from being used to purchase anything other than foods, a check of the Boulder City government website says you can use your Quest card to withdraw cash from an ATM, which is what is happening at several Denver-area pot shops equipped with these money machines.

It’s an obvious abuse of taxpayer funds that for now is legal in Colorado.

Truly, God commands us to take care of the poor and the widows. That is Christian charity.  

But There Are Those Who Need Genuine Help

There are those who are laid off from their jobs through no fault of their own and are earnestly looking for work.

There are those who are disabled and want to work but can’t.

There are those who have worked hard all their lives but now, be it their age, changing technology or lack of modern skills, are shut out of the employment field.

They can’t find work and are desperate; they need food stamps and unemployment benefits to make ends meet until they get back on their feet.

That’s totally understandable.

But what about those who refuse to take a job because they feel it is beneath them or that it doesn’t pay enough to suit their tastes?

Why work two part-time jobs when you can collect more from the government?

Work ethics say a lot about our relationship with God. If you are not working, is it because you cannot get a job or don’t want one? If you are working, what is your attitude towards your job?

Perhaps it’s a feeling of frustration with life that translates into “the  government owes me a living.”

No matter the reasoning, there are those who don’t want to pull the cart.

They want to ride in the cart and have the rest of the work force do the pulling.

And that cart is overloaded.

Not wanting to work or having a bad attitude at work is not what God wants for you.

If you are a Christian and count yourself among those in the cart and you are able to work, you had better do some soul-searching.

   “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.” (Proverbs 10:4)

Your attitude towards work says a lot about your attitude towards God.

  “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.” (Colossians 3:23)

A Valuable Lesson For You About Work

I learned a valuable lesson over the years. I don’t work for a company, I work for Jesus.

Before my recent retirement, I didn’t always like my job, but I went to work in the mornings to a job where Jesus is the Chairman of the Board.

Jesus is the boss. That is my attitude.

I had not called in sick in at least 5 years. I didn’t take “mental days” off. I started work about 20 minutes early.

I prayed that God would see me through the tough spots and thanked Him for the less crazed moments.

Today, I work a part-time job and have the same attitude. Work as if unto the Lord.

My reward? I have been able to enjoy the fruits of my labor, just as God intended, and I have been working since I was 13.

I have found you cannot separate the two – work and God – because they are intrinsically connected to who you are as a Christian.

Your work ethic is part of your Christian walk.

How you view work and how you handle your job speaks volumes to others about your Christianity.

How would you rate your work ethics? Would you hire you?

Are you the kind of worker a boss swears by … or at?

Unfortunately today, not many are willing to acknowledge Jesus as the Chairman of the Board at their job.

My father was from the Old Country. He used to tell us kids, “You can have anything you want in America … but you have to WORK for it.”

No matter Dad’s faults, he instilled in us a strong work ethic.

During a rough patch between jobs,  my Dad mowed lawns. He was an immigrant. He never had the attitude of “Where’s mine?”

He never thought the government owed him a living. He worked. We never went hungry.

Although my parents were not Christians, God provided out of his love and abundance. I believe He honored my Dad’s work ethics.

   “You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.” (Psalms 128:2)

As the Bible says:

   “In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty.” (Proverbs 14:23)

Through work we meet our needs, the needs of our families and the needs of others, all spokes in the big wheel of life.

Our work grows the economy, raises taxes, pays wages, and through that we are able to support the church and help the poor.

Whether you are looking for a job or trying to make the most of the one you have, remember you have a friend you can always talk to.

You have a Chairman of the Board who is never too busy to take your call.

[image credits to Kendall Connor, Richard Wong]