LONG-RANGE VISION: Work and the extra effort

Abraham sent his servant to find a wife for Isaac. He wanted a wife from his own people because of shared values; he wanted the same kind of person for his son that he had found in Sarah. He sent his most trusted servant to get the job done. The servant prayed to the God of Abraham and asked for success on his journey. As he prayed, he laid out a plan to find the right kind of person for his master’s son. The story is told in Genesis 24. Make sure that you read it yourself; insights abound in this story.

The servant prayed for a woman that would demonstrate an attitude of service that would be unselfish, willing, and beyond the expected. In short, he prayed that she would get water for him but that she would voluntarily get water for his camels also. Can you picture this in your mind? How much water do camels drink? How long did it take her to do this voluntary labor? Was the servant impressed? You bet!

Abraham did not tell the servant this but the servant knew Abraham’s heart. He wasn’t just after a relative—He had seen Lot’s choices earlier—He was after a certain type of person. He was looking for someone who had learned the joys of serving, of hospitality, of work. He found her in Rebekah.

Where did Rebekah learn this stuff? At home, in the family, from her earliest days. She did not get this at a seminar. She grew up with this modeled for her in the family. She saw it in the hearts of her parents, uncles, and aunts. She caught it. I am also quite sure that she was taught it. The ways of the people of the Middle East are passed down intentionally. I have seen it first-hand with my own father-in-law.

Getting to know him was one of the enriching episodes of my life. Listening to his perspective, puzzling with his sense of humor, seeing his desire as a father to pass on his values to his kids and grandkids. Patricia has told me how he would train her in hospitality, in gift-giving, in conversation, in serving. I have seen him laugh as he tried to teach my own kids, his grandchildren, how to snap your fingers the Arab way. He was always teaching: fruit trees, real estate, family.

I have been blessed like Isaac was blessed; I have received a wife who carries within her timeless values of serving and work and hospitality. In turn, I have watched and learned as she has taught our children the things her dad taught her.

Abraham was called to be a blessing to the whole earth through his descendants. His servant knew that a selfish wife for Isaac would be out of alignment with God’s plan. May we train our children to work and to serve by going beyond the expected. This value of blessing over and beyond the norm is at the heart of God.

As parents today, let’s catch it ourselves, model it, and pass it on. By doing this, we will be blessing countless peoples for generations to come. . . like Rebekah . . . and like Abraham. . . and like Jesus.

If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.

Matthew 5:41

LIVE BEYOND THE EXPECTED!

LONGRANGE VISION: Glorious Work

Mike and I had been posted for ambush along the route where the enemy trucks made deliveries. Our mission: to disrupt supply lines. Our success rate: zero. Our inadequate firearms simply could not stop the heavy trucks as they came rolling through, sometimes right between us. On this particular day, we unloaded our entire clips to no effect.

The truth is that we were twelve years old, our guns were sticks carefully chosen to look as much like rifles as we could manage, our enemies were dump trucks running along Perkins Lane. But it was great fun: imaginative, creative, and OVER. Along came my dad, ”Throw that stick down and get the lawn mower and let’s get this lawn mowed.” This was a two to three hour project, depending on how enthusiastically I approached it, or it depended on what I wanted to do with the rest of my day. So I mowed the lawn. The job was done, something was accomplished, my dad was pleased; then I could go back to playing. . . happily. At that age, I thought it was the playing that made me happy; since then, I have learned that it was the work.

Ecclesiastes 5:19 Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work--this is a gift of God.

Teaching our kids to work happily is a challenge we all face. Unfortunately, few people put the word happy and the word work in the same sentence. Most associate work with drudgery. They live for the weekend, for the vacations, for the retirement, and the result is less effective work.

We have the mistaken idea that work is a curse, not an opportunity. Because of this, we are reluctant too often to engage our children in regular work, thinking of it as punishment, not blessing.

Gen. 1: 26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule . . over all the earth.” Gen. 2: 15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. THOSE WHO WORK . . .RULE! God assigned Adam work to do before he sinned. Work is not part of the curse. It is the path to rulership. Jesus said that serving is the path to greatness.

John 17: 4 I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. Jesus saw his task as opportunity to bring glory to God; so should we. This is what we should be passing on to our kids. Completed work glorifies God.

Gathered tips on training our kids to work joyfully: When our kids were younger, we made Saturday morning a work time. We set clear goals to be accomplished. When the work was complete, we all went for pizza. In Sydney Taylor’s book All-of-a-Kind Family she tells how the mother hid a coin somewhere within the day’s chores, making the job both more exciting and the efforts more thorough. You could keep it if you found it. Gregg Harris established a rule for his household that involved work. Here it is: Whoever messes it up cleans it up. You can clean it up with your child but not for your child.

Quote for the week: I long to accomplish a great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble. Helen Keller

Question for next week: What is your family mission statement?