A
daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and
exhortation.
Friday,
April 23,
2021
Early yesterday morning we passed this quaint
neighborhood along Strasburg Pike in Lancaster County.
Click on photo to enlarge
Click on photo to enlarge
"The
Blessing of Work"
Message
summary: Today
we urge you to view your labor as an act of
obedience to God and as a means of fulfilling
His plan for your life. We honor God when we see
labor as a blessing!
Listen to this message on your audio player.
"Then man goes out to his work, to his labor until evening. How many are your works, O LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures" (Psalm 104:23,24).
In so many ways we seem to be experiencing the rapid de-evolution of society with new levels of craziness reported practically every day. Evil is called good and good is called evil. So today we want to share some perspective from the ground where we live; places where people are living responsibly and working hard for a living.
We began early yesterday morning with a visit to the employees at a metal shop and construction company and sat in on a safety meeting. We looked about as the earnest workers were beginning their day and preparing to make a meaningful contribution to the world. I spoke for afew minutes with a young man named Luke, who is vocationally following in the footsteps of Jesus the carpenter.
We then went to the Old Windmill Farm where we split up for several hours so I could take Jesse on some errands and Brooksyne took Anna Ruth out for some shopping and later they visited the children's school.
Jesse
took me to an Amish foundry where they cast metal
into various parts. The foundry wasn't fired up
yesterday but it was still very interesting. The
men to the left are grinding and cleaning parts.
Driving through the country we passed a young Amish man (probably a teenager) working the fields behind a large mule team. Jesse told me he probably felt good about this duty; that his dad trusted him with a large team.
In the afternoon I visited a metal fabrication shop and spoke to a young man, still in his teens. He is a student at Thaddeus Stevens, a local trade school and yesterday was serving as an intern. I commended him for his efforts in learning a valuable trade and working hard.
Many consider labor a dirty five letter word, a necessary evil just to get by in life. In fact, practically every store or business we enter these days has large signs, "Now Hiring", "Interview held Tuesdays and Thursdays". A desperate McDonalds posted a sign in Lebanon County, "Sign up today, get paid tomorrow." So many seem to avoid work at all costs. But that's sure not a Scriptural view of work.
We find it interesting that the picture of man in the daily Scripture portion is at work. "Then man goes out to his work, to his labor until evening". God has ordained work into His created order. In the Fourth Commandment God said, "Six days shalt thou work". Solomon said, "The sleep of a laborer is sweet" and Paul wrote, "Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men". In the book of Revelation we read of a future time when the faithful, "will rest from their labor".
However such a time of rest is not for the present. The created order requires labor on the part of mankind. It's not a Scripture verse but we do believe the statement, "Idleness is the devil's workshop" to be a truth. We believe so much of the dysfunction in our cities and elsewhere is a result in part due to idleness.
Today we urge you to view your labor as an act of obedience to God and as a means of fulfilling His plan for your life. We honor God when we see labor as a blessing!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Listen to this message on your audio player.
"Then man goes out to his work, to his labor until evening. How many are your works, O LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures" (Psalm 104:23,24).
In so many ways we seem to be experiencing the rapid de-evolution of society with new levels of craziness reported practically every day. Evil is called good and good is called evil. So today we want to share some perspective from the ground where we live; places where people are living responsibly and working hard for a living.
We began early yesterday morning with a visit to the employees at a metal shop and construction company and sat in on a safety meeting. We looked about as the earnest workers were beginning their day and preparing to make a meaningful contribution to the world. I spoke for afew minutes with a young man named Luke, who is vocationally following in the footsteps of Jesus the carpenter.
We then went to the Old Windmill Farm where we split up for several hours so I could take Jesse on some errands and Brooksyne took Anna Ruth out for some shopping and later they visited the children's school.
Jesse
took me to an Amish foundry where they cast metal
into various parts. The foundry wasn't fired up
yesterday but it was still very interesting. The
men to the left are grinding and cleaning parts.Driving through the country we passed a young Amish man (probably a teenager) working the fields behind a large mule team. Jesse told me he probably felt good about this duty; that his dad trusted him with a large team.
In the afternoon I visited a metal fabrication shop and spoke to a young man, still in his teens. He is a student at Thaddeus Stevens, a local trade school and yesterday was serving as an intern. I commended him for his efforts in learning a valuable trade and working hard.
Many consider labor a dirty five letter word, a necessary evil just to get by in life. In fact, practically every store or business we enter these days has large signs, "Now Hiring", "Interview held Tuesdays and Thursdays". A desperate McDonalds posted a sign in Lebanon County, "Sign up today, get paid tomorrow." So many seem to avoid work at all costs. But that's sure not a Scriptural view of work.
We find it interesting that the picture of man in the daily Scripture portion is at work. "Then man goes out to his work, to his labor until evening". God has ordained work into His created order. In the Fourth Commandment God said, "Six days shalt thou work". Solomon said, "The sleep of a laborer is sweet" and Paul wrote, "Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men". In the book of Revelation we read of a future time when the faithful, "will rest from their labor".
However such a time of rest is not for the present. The created order requires labor on the part of mankind. It's not a Scripture verse but we do believe the statement, "Idleness is the devil's workshop" to be a truth. We believe so much of the dysfunction in our cities and elsewhere is a result in part due to idleness.
Today we urge you to view your labor as an act of obedience to God and as a means of fulfilling His plan for your life. We honor God when we see labor as a blessing!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father, help us to view work as a
blessing from You that gives us opportunity to
participate in gathering adequate provisions for our
family as well as making a positive difference in
our work setting. We seek to overcome challenges in
the workplace and are able to do so because we do
our work heartily, as for You, Lord primarily. We
seek to be just and diligent in our work not just
when we're being observed by our supervisors or
fellow-employees, but we remain aware that You are
always watching over us. We don't resent or dwell on
the negatives of our work or workplace, but
recognize how we serve You well when we work with a
cheerful heart. And we can do so knowing that our
reward is not just the weekly paycheck but most
importantly the glorious eternal inheritance we
receive in heaven. Keep us faithful we pray. Amen.Today we share some photos from our
explorations yesterday.
A stone farmhouse in eastern
Lancaster County, commonly seen throughout our
area. Always a work of solid craftsmanship.
Click on photo to enlarge
I saw these in a wheelbarrow at
the Amish Foundry.
Anyone recognize what they are?
See answer here.
These two lambs and kid goat
were fussing over this milk yesterday on
the Old Windmill Farm. Is the goat who
straddled the lamb, sucking on the
bottle, watching to make sure that
there's plenty of milk left for his
feeding?
Yesterday I stopped by to visit
Elvin, whom we used to see regularly in
the course of our chaplain work at Val-Co.
He retired several years ago after 57
years at the same company and is nearing
80. It was a very cold and windy day but
he was out working in his garden when I
pulled up to his place on Farmersville
Road. In the photo his wife, Mary, showed
me a quilt she was making.
After running some errands with
Anna Ruth, Ester and I took treats for the
children in the Amish School and I can
never resist taking photos of the lovely,
colorful and inspiration sayings on the
walls (with teacher's permission, of
course). These are enlarged so you can
take in the many prompts for learning the
25 students from kindergarten to 8th grade
are exposed to daily.
Click on photo to enlarge
Click on photo to enlarge
When I see "rainbows" used in
various contexts that I don't believe God
ever intended, I am heartened to see these
displays using the array of colors God
puts in the rainbows He creates.
Click on photo to enlarge
Click on photo to enlarge
Be sure to enlarge this picture
to see the many virtues God wants in
everyone of us no matter our age!
Click on photo to enlarge
Click on photo to enlarge
Finally
today:
Many
now use mobile banking on their smart
phone.
Here's
an example of mobile banking in the Amish
community!
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& Brooksyne
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Weber".Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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