WORK

Now that I am retired from working for a living, I find I miss work. I guess that is not so strange, because I seem to remember always enjoying my work. I had a lot of jobs over the fifty-three years I contributed to society, and most of them paid me with much more than a paycheck. Due to my low self-esteem due to being rejected by my parents, my emotional need to be appreciated was often satisfied by the praise of my employers. I also enjoyed challenge that most jobs gave me. I could feel good about myself. The workplace provided much needed camaraderie, and the "thank yous" when I was able to help customers. Finally, there was the escape from thinking about my problems by getting lost in my work. Sad, isn't it? Work was my therapy.

There were two parts of work that were, to say the least, uncomfortable: the fear of failure as I began a new adventure, and the sick feeling when I was fired. Fortunately, neither happen that often, and neither lasted long. I usually caught on quickly, or found a new job within a very short time. I did have to go on unemployment once, and it was very humbling.

When I was a student in college, I experienced the same feelings that accompanied challenge and success. I often took difficult courses to "test" myself, and because I was able to focus well on the task at hand, I was able to feel good about myself due to receiving good grades. While I did not experience the emotional trauma of failing, I did often experience fear when receiving the course syllabus; it always looked far too difficult for my limited abilities. The fact that I had been forced to drop out of high school, made my successes even more satisfying.

Perhaps that is why I was religious for most of my life. I wanted to work to please God. It is funny, I never thought of myself as a religious person, especially during the two years I was a "militant atheist." But even then, it seems I worked hard to discourage people from being "drugged" by society (Marx call religion the opiate of the masses).

Because I was an atheist the day God saved me, it was easy to believe that salvation is a gift, and not the results of works. If anything, I was working against God. I had been religious, but I had never been a true Christian. I received the gift of faith in the work of Jesus for me, and I became a child of God (Eph. 2:8-9; Titus 3:3-7; 1 Jn. 3:2; 5:13). Not only am I now resting from the work of a job, I am also resting in His finished work on my behalf. Now I "work the works of God" (Jn. 6:28-29) and do good works (Eph. 2:10; Titus 3:8). "I'll work 'til Jesus comes!" "...Even so, come, Lord Jesus" (Rev. 22:20).