Message Notes
Extreme Makeover          

Today: What to do When Your Work isn’t Working for You

May 23, 2004

 

1) You’ve got to start off by getting God’s PERSPECTIVE on work.

A)       God created work – Genesis 2:15-17 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.

 

B)       The painful toil of work comes from the Curse – Genesis 2:16, 3:17-19 ¹⁶ And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; ¹⁷ but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." …To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,' "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. ¹⁸ It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. ¹⁹ By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”

 

C)      Everybody is wired uniquely – Genesis 25:27 The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was a quiet man, staying among the tents.

 

D)      Work should be holy (set apart to God) - Colossians 3:23, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men...."

E)       We are commanded to work, therefore treat work as a calling – 2 Thessalonians 3:10-12 For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat." ¹¹We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies. ¹²Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat.

 

F)       We should not work more than six days a week – Exodus 20:8-11 "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. ⁹ Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. ¹¹ For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
See Hebrews 4:1-9 – We are no longer bound by the LAW to obey the Sabbath because Jesus is now our Sabbath rest. But our bodies still need a day to rest from work and to worship God.

 

2) If you have a job, THANK God for it! Many people are unemployed or unable to work.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 …give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

3) Difficult times, including difficult jobs, can cause us to reach out to God. Now that He has your attention, take advantage of it by drawing closer Him, praying continuously, etc.

Psalm 119:71 It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees.

 

4) Realize that wherever you are, you are a MISSIONARY.

1 Chronicles 16:8 Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done.

 

Matthew 28:19-20 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.

 

5) Begin to move to the place where your SHAPE, in tandem with your CALLING, defines your career.

SHAPE=Spiritual gifts, Heart, Abilities, Passion, Experiences

 

Acts 17:26-27 From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. ²⁷God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

Jesus, I want You to be in control in every area of my life: my career, my relationships, my time, my health, and my family. I want to put You first. Today, I humbly ask for your help. Jesus Christ, I admit to you that I am messed up. I realize today that I am not living my life for you. I realize my sin has offended you, so I turn from my sin and ask for the forgiveness that you freely give. I turn to you, Christ, and ask you to be the leader of my life. I give you everything I am and everything I will be. Amen.