Employment

• God's people should be good workers(Genesis 31: 42)-In fact, except for the grace of God-the God of my grandfather Abraham, the awe-inspiring God of my father Isaac-you would have sent me off without a penny to my name.  But God has seen your cruelty and my hard work.  That is why he appeared to you last night and vindicated me.

In this passage, we see that God's people should be good workers in all their dedication, duty fulfillment, attitude, and eager to complete required tasks.  They should stand out in their place of employment, and the grace of God should be evident in all that they do.  They should also be rewarded, or paid accordingly. God will vindicate those who are not properly rewarded. What this means is that God will find a way for the employer to justly reward his or her workers. He will reveal to the employers by means of visions, dreams, recommendations, or another means. Justice will be served for God's children.

• Work should not overrun your time with God (Exodus 16: 23)-He replied, "The LORD has appointed tomorrow as a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD.  On this day we will rest from our normal daily tasks.  So bake or boil as much as you want today, and set aside what is left for tomorrow."

Here we see that God has specifically commanded His people to have order even in their weekly routines, or lives.  He had appointed the seventh day of the week a day of rest.  No work would be done.  On the sixth day, He wants us to prepare the seventh day's meals, so that His servants would dedicate that day to Him as a day of rest.  He is showing His people to manage their days accordingly so that one thing does not run into the other, thus robbing them of their peace of mind, and resulting in their inability to dedicate time to worship Him, or follow His instruction.  Their lives would be blessed if they follow  in that way.  Everything would fall into place.

• God gives you the ability to work (Exodus 35: 30-31)-And Moses told them, "The LORD has chosen Bezalel son of Uri, grandson of Hur, of the tribe of Judah.  The LORD has filled Bezalel with the Spirit of God, giving him  great wisdom, intelligence, and skill in all kinds of crafts.  

This verse is proof that God gives the ability to work to those that He specifically chooses to fill certain positions.  He enables them, by filling him with His Spirit, granting them wisdom, intelligence, skills, and craftiness to fulfill their jobs accordingly.  It is God who chooses the people He wants to work in the setting that He wants them to work in, and provides them with what they need to get it done.  We know that God still works that way today, and that is why we are in the positions that we are in; we know that He has chosen us to do this work.

• Workers should be trustworthy (Proverbs 25: 13)-Faithful messengers are as refreshing as snow in the heat of summer.  They revive the  spirit of their employer.

When our employers know that they can trust their staff to fulfill their duties and responsibilities, it gives them peace of mind.  It allows them to relax, and concentrate their energies on other matters, focusing on the things that are crucial to the success of their lives, their organizations, and the lives of their staff.  The same applies to the Pastoral staff, Servants, Missionaries, and Evangelists. The word of God refreshes our souls. It is very refreshing to know that your staff is trustworthy to live by the truth. To speak the truth. To teach the truth. It is a win-win situation for both the employee and the employer.  Trust is an extremely invaluable virtue in the workplace.

• Do the best job you can (Ecclesiastes 9: 10)-Whatever you do, do well.  For when you go to the grave, there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom.

This verse shows us to do the best job we can regardless of our surroundings while we have the chance, and are alive.  We should be dedicated to God in that we have faith in pleasing Him; that He sees our hearts, and knows the thoughts of our minds.  In verse 11 it goes on to say that: the fastest runner doesn't always win the race, and the strongest warrior doesn't always win the battle.  What this means is that there are injustices in this world, just as Jesus knew the injustices when He was crucified for speaking the truth about who He was and where His Kingdom was.  The loss on earth  is only temporary.  That is why it is important for us believers to know where our souls will go at the time of death or when Jesus returns the second time for His Church.  This is our true reward in life.  As long as we have Jesus and we are saved, we know we truly did win.  We know that while we are alive we find peace in our hearts knowing we did the best we could, no matter what situation we are in, whether we are rewarded or not, whether we are acknowledged, or appreciated by the people or not.  God will acknowledge us in the end (even though He deserves all the credit).  We should always do the right thing, because it's the right thing to do.  We can't let the world change us into who the world is: If they choose to live unjustly, let them live that way, we should press on and continue to live the best way we can.

• Work as though Jesus were your boss (Ephesians 6: 6-7)-Work hard, but not just to please your masters when they are watching.  As slaves of Christ, do the will of God with all your heart.  Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the LORD rather than people.  

We see that we should reverence our employers as though they were the LORD Himself.  We should work with all our hearts.  We should be enthusiastic doing it, not thinking that we are just working for people.  Because it is God who has placed them in a position of authority over you.  

• Christians should do their best at their job (Titus 2: 9-10)-Slaves must obey their masters and do their best to please them.  They must not talk back or steal, but they must show themselves to be entirely trustworthy and good.  Then they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive in every way.  

When we are able to display a humble, obedient, pleasant attitude, not only are we able to please our employers, we are displaying good character, and trustworthiness.  We will be able to lead by example to those who do not know God yet, and it will attract them to His way instead of the way of the world.  

I hope that this study is as useful to the readers as it has been to my life, and hope it serves as a guide to you believers across the world.  May the LORD continue to bless you and protect you wherever you may go may his grace shine upon your face and favor follow you in whatever you do..  Amen!