John Buchanan did not see his father cry very often. But one occasion struck him so deeply that he has never forgotten it. His father worked on the Pennsylvania Railroad back in the 30s and 40s shoveling coal into the firebox of a steam locomotive. It was backbreaking work, and it was filthy dirty. Every night he came home covered with coal dust. But it was a paying job and it sustained the family.
During one of the recession periods in the late 1940s, when the economy slowed down, so did the railroad and the shops that were the chief sources of employment for the whole community. Many men were laid off and had to stand in line to receive unemployment benefits. The fathers of all of Buchanan's friends were out of work. Many tried to find alternative jobs working as ushers in a movie theater, serving as a janitor, pumping gas but there weren't nearly enough jobs to go around.
People were anxious and then frightened. The memory of the Great Depression was still fresh in their minds. Government surplus food was available, but you had to stand in line and verify your unemployed status, and that was very humiliating. Finally Buchanan's father swallowed his pride and stood in line and brought home a Government Aid parcel containing butter, cheese, flour, dried milk, and cans of beef stew. His mother tried to make an adventure of it, but the milk was awful and the beef stew well, his brother said it looked like dog food and Buchanan added that it tasted like it, too. Generally they were not allowed to make those kind of comments at the dinner table, but they got away with it that night. Their father quietly took their plates, scraped the beef stew into the garbage, and then went into the living room, where he sat down, put his head in his hands, and cried.(1) It can be devastating to be out of a job and unable to provide for your loved ones. If you have ever lost a job, you know how anxiety producing and how depressing it can be. Some people seem lost, some are angry, some feel that they are worthless - they are both sad and guilt-ridden. People who are in demanding jobs dream about how they would spend their time if they had several weeks off. But take away their job and all prospects for another, and most will be distressed.
Americans have a love/hate relationship with work. Surveys show that eighty percent say they will continue to work even when they don't need to earn an income. But nearly ninety percent say they do not like their jobs.
A few years ago, economist Juliet Schor wrote a book entitled, The Overworked American. She reported that in all social classes, from lower class to upper class, work hours and stress are up, while sleep and time with the family are down. "Wives working outside the home return to find a 'second shift' of housework waiting for them. Husbands add overtime or second jobs to their schedules. Single parents stretch in so many directions that they sometimes feel they cannot manage. Simultaneously, all are bombarded by messages that urge them to spend more money (which means ultimately to work more), in order to keep their homes cleaner, and to improve themselves as investors, parents, lovers or athletes. To make all this possible, grocery stores stay open all night, entertainment options are available around the clock and the culture offers fast food, time saving devices and exercise machines that promise to burn off calories in just a few minutes per day."(2) We are working more and more hours to accumulate more and more possessions and, supposedly, in order to improve ourselves. But we have to wonder if we have gotten a bit off course. When life feels like a treadmill where we are constantly burning our energy but not actually making much headway we need to pause and reflect on what we're doing. Is it necessary for us to expend all of our effort and energy to simply maintain what others tell us is an essential lifestyle?
In this morning's Old Testament passage from Ecclesiastes, the author writes, "There is nothing better for mortals than to eat and drink, and find enjoyment in their toil." Enjoyment in their toil. Yet ninety percent of Americans say, "I do not like my job."
I know that I am personally extremely fortunate because I love the ministry and I can't imagine doing anything else. But I also know that most people do not feel the same way about their work. The phrase "fun job" is an oxymoron to them. Finding enjoyment and satisfaction in their work is an illusive blessing they never experience.
In our culture, we often measure a person's worth by the number of hours she devotes to the job. It is not unusual to hear people complaining - but at the same time boasting - about the long hours they work. And it seems that the workplace has invaded every sphere of our lives. You can be out on the golf course teeing off or in a theater enjoying a movie or at a nice restaurant dining with friends, and someone's cell phone will ring regarding some matter of business. The writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us that there is no inherent virtue in working extra long hours. What counts, he says, is whether or not we find enjoyment in our work. How do we find enjoyment in our work?
We know that a job does not bring us joy simply because it allows us to accumulate more possessions. Generally when we get something we always wanted, we find that it is not as wonderful as we were expecting, and after a period of time, it loses its appeal and we find ourselves desiring something else - and then something else. How do we find enjoyment in our work? By doing something that genuinely matters - something that makes a positive difference in people's lives and makes the world a better place. Christ calls us to follow his example by feeding the hungry, visiting the lonely, healing the ill, housing the homeless, comforting the grieving, freeing the oppressed; helping people who are in need. Each one of us can do at least one of those things.
Andrew Young, the former mayor of Atlanta, tells of the time when one of his daughters came home from college to inform him of a decision she had made. She said, "Daddy, I heard a missionary talking about ministry in Uganda, and I've done a lot of praying about this, and I think God wants me to take a year off and go to Uganda as a missionary."
"Well, honey," her father replied, "You know that's all well and good, but there are many poor people right here in Atlanta that need you."
"Daddy, I know that, but I really believe that God is calling me to Uganda," she told him.
He said, "Honey, it's dangerous over there; you could get hurt."
"I know that Daddy, but I could also get hurt right here."
"But honey, you could get killed over there." "Daddy, I could be killed at any time, anywhere. I really believe that God is calling me to go to Uganda."
Young thought about it and prayed about it, and although it was very difficult for him, he loosened his grip on his daughter and let her go.
Later he said, "When my daughter walked onto that plane, I realized that in raising her in the church, what I said I wanted most for her was that she would become a respectable Christian. But I wasn't prepared for her to become a real one."(3)
Whether it is in your chosen career or in part-time volunteer work, if you want to find enjoyment, do something that will help others. And a good way for you to figure out what is right for you to do, is to match your abilities with the opportunities that present themselves.
In our reading from 1 Corinthians, Paul writes, "There are varieties of gifts...and there are varieties of services...and there are varieties of activities but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good."
Each person possesses certain abilities and encounters specific opportunities. When we use our particular talents to meet a specific need, we discover meaningful and fulfilling work. Perhaps our most important task is to figure out how our abilities can match our opportunities. We will be very fortunate if we can earn a living at it, but it doesn't always have to coincide with a career.
And we don't want to make the mistake of thinking that we must be holding down a job to perform meaningful work. You may be in school, or you may be retired, or you may be a stay at home mom or dad. Just because you're not receiving a paycheck does not mean that you have no meaningful work to do.
There is a wonderful vignette in William Least Heat Moon's travelogue, entitled, Blue Highways. Traveling cross-country with his dog, Moon runs into an elderly gentleman and the conversation turns to work. The old gentleman says, 'A man's never out of work if he's worth a (dime). It's just sometimes he doesn't get paid. I've gone unpaid my share and I've pulled my share of pay. But that's got nothing to do with working. A man's work is doing what he's supposed to do."(4)
Doing what we're supposed to do involves using our skills to meet the needs we encounter. It could happen in a full time career or in part time volunteer work. If we will remember that God intends for us to experience enjoyment in our work, we will be alert for the unique opportunities that come our way.
NOTES
1. From a sermon by John M. Buchanan, entitled, "Labor of Love," preached at The Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago on September 3, 2000.
2. Dorothy Bass, Practicing our Faith, (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1997), p.75.
3. From a sermon by Thomas K. Tewell, entitled, "A Letter to My Grandson at the Dawn of a New Century," preached at Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York on January 2, 2000.
4. From Buchanan's "Labor of Love."
© 2001 Dr. Gregory Knox Jones, all rights reserved