Labor of Love part 3
Entering into rest is really the only "work," if I can put it that way, that is left. And that's only because while God made the Way of Grace, we have to respond to it with the Walk of Faith in order to experience and enjoy the gift we've been given. See, faith doesn't make something true. The truth is already true. Always has been, always will be. Faith simply makes what is already true... true for you. Faith is the SUBSTANCE of things hoped for. Faith is knowing and believing that what God says about you is true. Again--it's true whether you believe it or not. But if you don't know it and believe it, it doesn't do you a whole lot of good. And here's why all of that is important--you can't give what you don't have, and you can only give what you do have. So it's of paramount importance to know what you have. So that you can give it away. Use it. Enjoy it. Experience it. Receiving and releasing is the Divine Order of things. We love because God first loved us. He filled us up with His love so that it might overflow out of us. Naturally. With every move we make and every breath we take. Love is our nature. It's not just what we do, it's who we are. And that's why I'm convinced that anything--everything--we do can, and should be, a labor of love. Let's take me for example. I like to use myself for example because I know I won't get offended. At the moment I work at a grocery store. Which is important in the sense that people can't buy stuff if nobody works at the store. But which is also important in the sense that my paycheck helps put a roof over my family's head, and food on the table. So even if you're having trouble convincing yourself that you're doing your job because you love your employer, or because you love the people your job directly affects... at some point, somewhere, you can find the love. I work five or six days a week because I love my family. That's where the rubber meets the road. Paul even wrote about this, rather succinctly, when he penned 2 Thessalonians 3:10, "For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat." Work might not always feel important, especially when you're in the midst of a grind... or when you feel like you're missing out on things because you're "stuck at work." But if you keep your eyes on the prize, if I can say it that way, and you know why you're REALLY working... then it becomes less of a grind. It's a sacrifice, don't get me wrong, but when you have the right motivation it's totally worth it. And that's what this Rant series is really all about: Motivation. Why we do what we do. I believe that the best (probably the only) reason to do anything is because it is in your heart to do it. Living from the inside-out. Living from the heart. Doing everything we do heartily--to the best of our ability and because it is in our hearts to do it. It doesn't matter what "it" is. As long as you're doing it as unto the Lord. As long as you're doing it for the right reason. Even when it comes to work... it can, and ought to be, a labor of love!