The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
Hard work is not easy. I thought it good to get in front of the title immediately.
While in college, I spent a summer as a flagman for a construction company.
Waving a flag wasn’t particularly hard since the flag weighed less than a pound. Standing on black asphalt for eight hours in the summer sun nearly killed me. It was hard work, and nothing could have made it easy.
But we are commanded to work hard. In 2 Thessalonians 3:10-12, Paul provides a stringent command to the church folks in Thessalonica.
Apparently, some of the church members preferred sitting in the shade and sipping tea.
Paul wrote the following: “For even when we were with you, we used to give you this order: If anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat either.
For we hear that some among you are leading an undisciplined life, doing no work at all, but acting like busybodies.”
I’m not sure God paid much attention to me standing on the asphalt all those summer days. I’m sure He knew I was there, but someone waving a flag for eight hours may not particularly concern Him.
Being a flagman would have been hard for either a believer or a nonbeliever. But a believer is called to be different when he serves as a flagman. Is he to wave the flag differently? Maybe use swoops rather than swipes?
The easy yoke of hard work begins with attitude. The believing flagman rises from his bed uttering this bit of paraphrase of Psalm 118:24: “This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it.”
Whatever the day brings, the believing flagman knows the day belongs to his God. Even if the day’s temperature reaches three figures, the day remains His.
The second aspect of the believing flagman’s attitude is found in 1 Corinthians 10:31: “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
He waves his flag to the glory of God. May he hope for the day when someone asks him why he waves his flag. The flagman holds up cars and releases cars to the glory of God.
His answer can’t simply be, “I’m paid, moron.” It is something more like, “God has blessed me with this job, and I’m thankful to Him for it all.”
Even alone on a highway, the flagman doesn’t work in a vacuum. He’s part of a construction crew. If crew members find out he’s a believer, they will study him. How does he act? What words does he use? Especially, how hard does he work?
Suppose his co-workers tease him about his faith. Then let him praise God even more.
Jesus provides an excellent reason: “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great.” (Matthew 5:11-12)
Suppose the flagman becomes supervisor over several flagmen. What a wonderful opportunity before him! He now has the opportunity to be a servant. A supervisor as a servant?
Philippians 2:3-4 says it excellently: “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interest of others.”
Did you notice Paul called lazy people ‘undisciplined’ and ‘busybodies’ in 2 Thessalonians 3:11? Being undisciplined simply leads to more work.
April was away from home for a week, and I was charged with keeping the donkeys alive and intact.
That included mucking the donkeys’ stalls. Suppose I had left the mucking to the seventh day. You know, just in time for April’s return home.
Leaning on an ‘undisciplined’ approach to mucking would have only caused more work in the end. Furthermore, I certainly had no time to be a busybody, gossiping and poking my nose into everyone’s business.
Finally, people have no respect for liars, cheaters, or thieves. They certainly possess no respect lazy people either. What good has a lazy man wrought? None. Embrace the easy yoke of hard work.