Be Balanced in Your Work

Overwork can shorten your life and can cause the things that really matter to be short-changed. Not enough work can also be detrimental as you are unable to make a living and it affects your self-worth. We need balance because too much or too little work can hurt us. Is your work week balanced?

When I worked a summer job for IBM while I was going to Bible School, what a great job, I worked as many hours as they would let me, over 60 a week. I was thrilled to be able to make the money to pay for school. But it was a job and it was hard, boring, long and monotonous. I remember once getting a task that required me to use regular snips to cut a part. My hands got so tired and sore I could hardly keep doing it. A big boss came around to inspect it with my regular boss. The guy asked me about it and I told him I had about had it. He just looked at me and walked off. So much for open and honest communication. This life was filled with work. I knew it was only temporary however. It was out of balance. But I had to make hay while the sun shines.

Work must be balanced. Two Extremes: People only there to make the money to do what they want to do on the weekends; work my 40 hours and not a minute more, they hate their work.

The other side of work is those that have thrown themselves into their work. Their identities are wrapped up in their work. Their success in life depends on their success at work. Life only has meaning if their work is successful. They are willing to sacrifice friends, marriage, family, health, etc., to make sure they succeed at work.

Most of us are somewhere in the middle. Prioritize so you won’t get pulled down and stressed, and burned out. A balanced lifestyle enables us to not only begin well but far more importantly, to end well. God does not intend for us to be shooting stars or firework Christians.

Ecclesiastes 4:8 Here is a man who lives alone. He has no son, no brother, yet he is always working, never satisfied with the wealth he has. For whom is he working so hard and denying himself any pleasure? This is useless, too — and a miserable way to live. TEV

How do we balance our workweek? Don’t bring your work home. (Don’t talk about it).
Prioritize: schedule most important things first. God, spouse, kids, work; now God gives grace for the rest to get done. 168 hours in a week. 40 to 50 you work with commuting. 56 you sleep. Avg. of 65 hours of free time. Try to work 40 hrs a week, not 60. (Have enough energy to give to the other higher priorities).

The bible says that God told Abraham “I will bless you … and you will be a blessing [dispensing good to others].” (Genesis 12:2)God did not create us to work for the sake of work but to create, produce and be challenged. This should bring great joy to our lives. What you believe about how God wants to provide for you determines what you do with your hands, knowledge and time. Are you busy doing the right things that are effectively providing for your life, others, and God’s work?

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

God created us to be productive through work.
Proverbs 6:9-11
9 How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? 10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest 11 and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man. NIV

This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was asked to do it. Everybody was sure Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that, because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn't do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.

Work makes you useful. Our family needs are met. This is basic and you might not think it is a God benefit, but it is doing something that God wants done in the world to supply your needs. (Some are hoping to win the lottery, or use get rich quick schemes, or play “Deal or No Deal” with Howie Mandel.)Work enables you to fulfill God’s plan for your life. The bible tells those that are rich:

1 Timothy 6:18-19
18 to do good, to be rich in helping others, to be extravagantly generous. 19 If they do that, they'll build a treasury that will last, gaining life that is truly life. MB

How you work is important. Work with the right motive. The bible tells us to work with a smile; serving God is your motive to work. God will reward you when you keep a good attitude and not just work enough to get by. (Eph 6:5-8 MB).

How much should we work? It depends on your priorities – married, number of children, called to church work, etc. Also we must have four things in balance: work, rest, play, and worship.

Dr. Charles Garfield, the professor of the University of California Medical School in San Francisco, studied 1500 outstanding achievers in all walks of life. He said that high performers are willing to work hard but within strict limits. For them, work is not everything. When Garfield interviewed top executives in ten major industries he found that they knew how to relax, they could leave their work at the office, they prized close friends and family life, and they spent a healthy amount of time with their children and intimates. They were balanced.

Don’t spend all your time each week at work. Be balanced by making time for family and friends. Be successful as a person by including worship, rest, and play. Realize, too, that God does want to bless your work, not your idleness. Use your work to bless others and fulfill God’s plan for your life and to help the Gospel be proclaimed.