work is...

I read this article today on work, and I've been thinking a lot about it.  

I know there are a lot of days where work seems overwhelming & exhausting-- and I'm in full-time ministry...  there are other jobs that are & should be way more tiring than mine.  But even in ministry, one of the main reasons why people leave is because they burn out.

Apparently that seems to be true all across America, in all jobs.  In Europe they are very good at taking their holidays-- all of August majority leave on holiday.  But they have other problems of their own... So what is the balance?  How do you work & rest?  "...we burn out while Europeans rust out.  So the answer might not be found between Europe and America, but between Genesis and Revelation."

"God designed work to have periodic breaks. You can call it a Sabbath or vacation. The word vacation comes from the Latin vacatio, meaning 'freedom.'  God designed us to be free-- free from enslavement (America's plight) or irresponsibility (Europe's problem).  Perhaps renewing a biblical vision for work can help Americans & Europeans achieve a healthy balance."

The Hebrew word for "cultivate" is "avodah".  It is also translated= work, worship, service, ministry & craftsmanship.  Work, worship, service, ministry, craftsmanship... all the same word??  Hmm...

"Perhaps God sees his whole creation as being of one fabric-- 

seamless.  

Hence, if we work in the way he designed us, 

that work is an expression of worship."

We yearn for this, I yearn for this-- "a coherent cohesive world of work, faith & life... yet we live in a compartmentalized world-- as separate spheres."

I don't want to burn or rust out... I don't want to live a compartmentalized life... where I work & work & wait for that specific time set aside for rest... play... holiday... worship... service... 

I want to live as I was designed, a seamless life of enjoying all of what the work God created us for really is.

"The Story of Work"

Michael Metzger; The Clapham Institute