Chasing the Vapor | Ep. 4

- Guys, we're in week four now of this Bible study together. And we're gonna be diving into one of the major themes this week, last week, we had talked about time, the week before we talked about pleasure. But this week, we're talking about this concept of work, right? And you know, depending on, you know, whether you've thought about this type of thing before, I hadn't really ever considered this, you know, before studying for this Bible study. But work is a main theme, one of the main things that we see here in the Old Testament. We see it in God's design and His design for us. And as people are keeping along in the Bible study with us, some of the key texts for this week are coming from chapter two and chapter five, where the author is wrestling with this idea of work, that we can work every day of our life and it can all be the thing, right? Even if we're working for a prophet, for money, for success, for identity. But yet, there's also this idea that work is what we were created for. One of the things we were created for, which is interesting to think about. So as you guys have been reading through Ecclesiastes and going through this study, how do you see work in the light of what the authors talk about?

- You know, I wanna say the first thing I think of is a song working nine to five. It's RIP Dolly Parton. - Oh, yes. - Yeah, sorry. But yeah, I think that's the first thing we think of when we think of work, right, is this job that I was created to do. And there's this work to live, kind of live to work concept that we'll really think through and play out. But I think in our culture specifically, work is thought of as something to achieve and be successful in. I think of somebody who is grinding at the office and they say, "Oh, I've worked 60 hours this week." One person might say, "That's crazy." But the person who really values work is, "Oh my gosh, that's something to achieve." But at what cost are you valuing your work over your relationships in your life? Because I don't think 60 hour work week is something to be boastful of. But I think it's where our priority lies. 'Cause like you said, we were created to work, but at what cost are we valuing our work to the detriment of our family? And really our lives in general, 'cause we talked about how we were created for meaning and for purpose,

but work can't be all we find our identity in. - That's good. - You know, I think you hinted at this, Sarah. I think we have kind of a love-hate relationship with work. Like there's a part of us that really wants to achieve and really wants to be like, "Oh, I wanna climb the ladder. "I wanna get the promotion. "I wanna do this. "I wanna do this." But then there's also a part of us that is like work isn't necessary evil. Like I have to do this. Like I gotta get up and go to work or things like that. And we just kind of view it as, you know, a 40 hour work week is oppressive or it's hard for you. Like we shouldn't have to work 40 hours a week. Like you hear that kind of a lot. And I think there's just this idea that we have of, man, this is just something I gotta put up with so that I can live. You know, there was a recent study done that something around like 70% of people say that they're disengaged at work. So it's, you know, seven out of 10 people, you come across in your workplace every day. You're like, "Yeah, I'm just here 'cause I have to be here. "I'm just here, I'm just here so I don't get fined." I think it's Marshall Lynch. Oh, once said.

So I think there is, there's a weird dichotomy in our culture of work that we either really, really love it and really, really wanna get meaning from it or we just really wish we didn't have to do it. And sometimes it's present on the same day, right? You're like, "Okay, you feel both those emotions." But, you know, biblically, there is that idea that, you know, in Genesis one and two, when God creates the world, He tells Adam and Eve before the fall to fill and subdue the light to work, to do these things. And I think we've lost sight of that idea. Like, work is not a consequence of the fall. We were created, not necessarily for work, but we were created to work where God wanted us to continue what He was doing in creation. That's interesting. So I think that's a good thing to bring up is that work is not a consequence of the fall, right? And then what was the last thing that you had said again? That we're not created for work, but we're created to work, that God has worked for us to do. But that work has been frustrated, right? Again, that's part of the curse in Genesis three, that one of the first things God tells Adam in Genesis three, 17 through 19 is you're gonna work, but the ground's gonna produce the thorns for you and work like there isn't so much that Ecclesiastes tells us about of like this is a good thing but man it's messed up because of what sin is done. You know it's a unique tension to man

edges isn't it? Because like it's a it's a necessary thing for us to survive to be able to provide for ourselves or our family or whoever we're taking care of and yet there's also part of this biblically where it's like okay like we as almost as a gift like we get to step into working and I think it provides so many good things for us but at the same time it can be so difficult at least looking at myself where it's like man like do I just view people by what they do or what their career is and when I die when like when I peel back layers of that like in my own heart it's it's almost as if I have viewed my life through the lens of like equating a career to value right like a person's value is tied to their career and then money comes from that right status comes from that but why do you guys think because I don't think that's just a me thing I think that's like a that's a cultural thing maybe for us. Yeah I see a lot of people getting frustrated because they might not be living like there I think there's a lot of moving pieces with this to why work feels frustrating for us and I think one of them might be you're not like using the gifts and callings that the Lord is like put you in so that can be frustrating if you have these gifts and you're not like walking in what God's created for you that can be frustrating but sometimes like it's just not the right season like we've talked about time with that so that's kind of a frustrating part and sometimes work is unproductive like I think productive work does something for our spirit because it is moving something forward and we see the fruit of that but when we're doing just like meaningless like data work maybe or like busy work or whatever job you might have it's like oh this feels so fruitless and unproductive that can be frustrating for sure because the work we were created to do think about the garden he was called to cultivate the chaos I love that phrase like cultivate the chaos of the garden he said like manage and tend this garden and so that's part of our job too here on earth is what we're called to and when we can't cultivate the chaos and it just seems fruitless like that really feels so unproductive for our hearts and really frustrating but also and we'll talk about this in some coming weeks we have to work with people that are broken and messy and so that creates a lot of tension with work or like yeah sorry guys but that creates so yeah it's just it really is it's like another layer to this frustration because we do have to work with other people but I think there's so much line here in what we see as work because we were called to it like we are called to work but how do we do it in the midst of chasing the vapor as we're talking about right like all of these things that work together how do we see our work as productive and fruitful while we're here and I you know I think Sarah you

had a truth about work that so many people struggle with is I think I heard Tim Keller either say this or write about it once that when we we encourage kids to think about their career so often we make them think about well what's gonna make you money yeah and what's or even what's gonna make you famous like influencers the number one job kids want now like what what are you gonna make money at rather than thinking what am I good at yeah and what was I made to do what what are the things that aren't going to frustrate me and I think sometimes we it's instance since we see work isn't necessarily evil we approach it with well I want to get as much of it out of it as I can so I'm just going to do something that's going to make me a lot of money and that just makes it more disappointing yeah it's good yeah you know and and I think like all of that I think it's so good because each of us struggle with all this to a degree all right we've been in a place where it's like oh man like this this may not be a roller position or a season or whatever it is where it's like we're finding a ton of value in and trying to trust God in the midst of it we've talked about that already but how like what would your all's encouragement be for someone that's watching this right now that is like hey I think I can self-identify that I have put a lot of my self-worth in the career I have either good or bad like what would your encouragement for them be you know I think they're one of the books I was reading about Ecclesiastes one of the authors said something they just kind of struck with me and he said you know part of our frustration comes from work with what are you expecting work to do for you like what are you expecting it to do for him and you know we don't we sometimes get frustrated we sometimes put too much emphasis in it even because we're expecting it to give us some everyone agrees with us, that I'm not even a big fan of yard work, but there's something about being done cutting the grass and being like, "All right, the job is done. It's finished. It looks adequate." It looks fine. I think there is that element, and even Ecclesiastes talks about it. We miss that satisfaction, or we continue to chase that satisfaction, because we don't actually stop and step back, and we don't say, "Hey, what has God equipped me and allowed me to do today?" My job is not because of me. It's because of him. My talents are not because of me. They're because of him. My abilities that I've grown over the course of time. God has given me those things. You used the word grind earlier. If we view work as a grind, we're going to get all messed up. If we view it as a gift, then we're going to have a better attitude towards it. I agree with all of that. That's really

good, Brandon. I think too, I write this down, let your job be something you do, not something you are. Just let it be something that the words called you to do, but we can't find our whole identity in whatever we think is going to fulfill us, whether it be success, or calling, or even calling. I think we can wrongly place calling as an idol sometimes, if we say, "Oh, I'm not measuring up to what God has called me to do here." That can also really cause us a lot of discontentment in life, but also think Colossians 3.23, "Work for the Lord, not for men." I just think of that, just being faithful in the job that you're in, knowing you're not working for success, but you're just working faithfully because God has placed you in this job in this season. You're living out where He's called you to be, and we talked about time last week, but it's just like, "Okay, for this time, for this season, this is the job I'm in." Even though it might not be the best thing in the world or what I want, I'm still going to work faithfully at it because He's where He's placed me right now. Absolutely. And Brandon, it's a final word here, a question I have for you to close this out for this week. I think there's a passage, pretty sure it's in the New Testament, talking about the way we should approach work as if we are. Walk us through that. Yeah. Paul invites us in Colossians, and I think also in Ephesians, to look at our work as though we are working for the Lord, as though He is our employer. And I think that's an interesting way to view our work, because it starts with looking at it as a gift. This is what God has said in front of me today to get done and to accomplish. It also makes work kind of an act of stewardship, really, is that I'm going to steward this opportunity. And Ecclesiastes will wrestle with the idea, "One of the problems with work, one of the limits of work, is that you eventually die, or you retire, and someone else gets your job, and they may mess it all up." And certainly Solomon knew that. His son Rehoboam inherited the kingdom and immediately split it into. He was not a good king. And so when we recognize the limits of that work, we realize, "Hey, this is what is given to me. I can't be responsible for anybody but myself." And I have to view this as I'm doing what God has called me into. I'm doing what God has gifted me into. And I'm allowing Him to work through me in that. And there's another author. I'm trying to remember who it was, who I read in the midst of this, who said, "Do you really have the attitude and the viewpoint that you have been deployed to your workplace? That God has you there. He sent you there. He wants

you there because He doesn't have an economic impact for you to make. He doesn't have a fiscal impact for you to make. He has a kingdom impact for you to make. And I think if we could take Paul's words there in Colossians 3 and view it that way, it would change the way we viewed our work. What if I realized I'm not working for man, I'm working for God? Because this is what He has for me. This is what He's put in front of me. And I'm going to be faithful. Maybe not successful. I'm going to be faithful to the work that He has set in front of me. [MUSIC] [BLANK_AUDIO]