– By Elder Andrew Sabaratnam. Elder Andrew is an Academic Director at NP’s School of Engineering, with 19 years of lecturing under his belt. (A Young Adult Fellowship Talk, 12 May 2007. Here are some pertinent notes I took.)
Why do we have to work? God first created man to take care of His creation. It was when man sinned, where work became toil (Genesis 3:17-19).
So first and foremost, we should learn to see our vocation as our calling, rather than it simply being a job. He has placed us in that workplace for a purpose. From there, we’ll be able to understand how we can be a light to the world and live a life worthy of the calling we have received (Ephesians 4:1).
An example to take would be Esther. She was a Jew, an orphan, who eventually became a Persian queen to the King Xerxes. He was a King whom nobody could meet unless there was an appointment made; this extended to even Esther herself. Amidst politics that stemmed from her uncle’s refusal to bow in worship to the conniving prime minister, the king was insinuated by the latter to do a Jewish holocaust. This meant that Esther herself was liable.
As the Jewish community mourned, Mordecai, her uncle, said to her (Esther 4:13-14), "Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?"
He persuaded her to stand up to speak to the king, and her action saved the lives of thousands of Jews.
She was put there by God for a purpose; so are we in our current situations.
Next, we have to free ourselves of the notion that every job we have must be weighed by its financial worth. We can rest in the promise that God cares about everything that He has created, what more us who are made in His image. Being taken in too much by monies will divert our attention from listening to Him and taking note of His direction and admonishments.
It’s also then, when we will be able to listen to the still small voice. We are reminded not to separate work and spiritual life. With a close spiritual walk with God, we will be conscious about His word and our actions in the workplace.
On vocational integrity:
2 Timothy 2:15 - "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth."
- (15a) Do your best, no matter how much you like or dislike your work. Again, it ties back to perspective. Seeing your job as a calling means acknowledging that your job is in God’s plan for you. So when we work, we work for Him.
- (15b) Doing your work truthfully and handle the truth correctly. In circumstances faced with moral and rule bending, ask yourself if such is the environment you’d want to continue working in.
- 2 Corinthians 5:16-19 … Be committed to the message of reconciliation as Christ reconciled the world to Himself, not counting man’s sins against them.
Regard no one from a worldly point of view. Man disappoints, but God never does. Also, do everything generously. Freely serve, as Christ served us. Serve in response to Christ’s love and do it in His name.
Finally, take the Sabbath rest. God rested on the seventh day of creating the world, and we should follow suit. It doesn’t have to be a Saturday or Sunday per se — there is a reason — to prevent us from seeing work as a burden. And thus prevents us from burning out.
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Romans 12:3 — "For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you".
I’m looking forward to Shrek 3’s premeire on Tuesday with him, though. (The brother got tickets that ended up in my hands, heh.) A good break’s definitely in order for the boy (not that break lah) – I certainly don’t want him to burn out, nor neglect his fillial duties. 
