Work…a blessing or curse from God?

It would not be very difficult to convince some that work is a curse. Even the word is used in other contexts to describe things that are difficult. When someone says, "Boy! Now that was work!", they aren't referring to a walk in the park. What is the purpose of work, anyway? Pay the bills? If you had all the money you would ever need in life-what kind of job would you want to have? Would you ever work again?

Did God have any designs for us in terms of work or was work truly a curse from God? In the 'second' creation account in Genesis 2 we read:

(Genesis 2:8-9, 15 NIV) Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground--trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.

Not only was work not a curse from God, it was His first stated purpose for man-whether in the account in Genesis 1 or Genesis 2. (In the Genesis 1 account, God's first stated purpose for creating man was also to work, managing both the earth as well as all the fish, birds, livestock and all creatures.)

It would surprise a lot of people to discover that God's first stated purpose for man wasn't to be religious. It wasn't to be a good husband or father. It wasn't to be a good citizen or church member. It wasn't to become a minister, priest or missionary. It was not to make enough money to keep religious programs on the air. It did not even include worship, prayer or singing religious songs! The first reason stated in the Bible for God creating man was to work.

So! Why does work run the gamut in our lives between drudgery and becoming a god that enslaves us? The turning point from best to worst came early in man's history. Before much time passed, Adam and Eve disobeyed God. There would be consequences of their disobedience. God told the matriarch that her curse would be related to her children and her relationship with her husband. To Adam, God said:

(Genesis 3:17-19 NIV) "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."

From then on, work-the fulfilling, rewarding activity in God's perfect plan for man-took on the potential of drudgery. What…or who…determines whether work is drudgery or fulfilling? In Ecclesiates, we read the contrast between drudgery and God's best initial plan for man:

The Worst… (Ecclesiastes 2:22-23 NIV) What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless.

The Best… (Ecclesiastes 2:24-25 NIV) A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?

The Difference… (Ecclesiastes 2:26 NIV) To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

As we please God in our life, work is one of the ways God has chosen to bless us. How do we do this?

(Deuteronomy 30:9-10 NIV) Then the LORD your God will make you most prosperous in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your land. The LORD will again delight in you and make you prosperous, just as he delighted in your fathers, {10} if you obey the LORD your God and keep his commands and decrees that are written in this Book of the Law and turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

'Turning to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul' has more benefits than just the eternal! Hope you learn how to really enjoy your work!