We’ve been exploring the different phases of man’s relationship to work—work in the sense of job, labor, or vocation. Man has had varying relationships to work from creation, to work after the fall, to work in light of the gospel of Jesus Christ. In the last installment of this series we began to look at how the gospel changes our view of work. Particularly, we were concerned with whether...
We’ve been talking about God’s grand plan for man and work. Previously, I wrote about God’s good design for work in Work is Not a Dirty Word. Then, in No TED Talks in Eden, we looked at how the curse affected work and how that makes attention to productivity even necessary. Now, I’d like to focus on the relationship between personal productivity and the gospel. I have...
In the last post, “Work is Not a Dirty Word“, we noted the wrong-headedness of believers assuming that just because it is difficult that work is, therefore, a consequence of the Fall. Work was created by God as very good. Man worked with joy and pleasure before the fall, and in the eternal state, he will once again enjoy the unfrustrated, painless joy of work as it was intended. But...
When we talk about the subject of productivity, we need to recognize that what we are really talking about is work—how to get more work done better, faster, etc. But some Christians carry with them the mistaken assumption that work is a bad thing. They believe it is a tedious but necessary consequence of sin and the fall. To many of us, work is synonymous with pain, toil, and frustration. We...
Productivity has to do with work—specifically being more effective and efficient in getting work done. What we may sometimes forget, however, is the ultimate reason for which Christians should try and be productive in our work. We should be productive in our work because we were made in the image of a productive God. The book of Genesis demonstrates this profound reality. The Bible throughout...
No matter what each day holds, or how bad things might get, I have an overarching reason to always get out of bed in the morning. I have not just a purpose to my life, I have the purpose of life. Today, whatever I do, I get to glorify the Maker of heaven and earth.
I don’t know about you but there’s only one place I’ve ever heard someone use the word “stewardship” and that’s in church. It’s not an exclusively Christian word, but if Oxford ever published a Lexicon of Christianese, “stewardship” would most certainly have an entry. Sadly, if this theoretical dictionary did exist, the definition for Christian stewardship would probably just say, “See tithe.” I...
All philosophies of productivity, at bedrock, contain a theology. Therefore, there is a genuine need for a distinctly Christian productivity in the church.
Do you ever get that nagging feeling when you’re trying to take a break? “I should really be working.” I’m willing to bet that if you’re reading a productivity blog, you’re someone who feels guilty when they relax. I want to show you one method for how to relax without feeling guilty that’s worked for me. Working in college and campus ministry, I have had...
I’m going to argue that there is a real Christian benefit to spending time alone in nature. To some that may seem obvious, to others it may conjure up images of mystics in caves, granola munching hippies, or just the discomfort of sweat and bug bites. But there is something about even just a brisk walk in the woods by yourself that does wonders for the soul.
