Who Do You Work For?

             

        Emily Gloria Wilson once worked as a maid for a man named John Kenneth Galbraith. One day Mr. Galbraith came home and asked his maid to hold his calls while he took a nap. While Mr. Galbraith was napping, Lyndon B. Johnson called. For those who are not history buffs, Lyndon B. Johnson was at that time President of the United States. He told Emily, “Get me Ken Galbraith. This is Lyndon Johnson.” Without hesitating, Emily replied, “He is sleeping, Mr. President. He said not to disturb him.” President Johnson replied, “Well, wake him up. I want to talk to him.” The maid replied, “No, Mr. President. I work for him, not you.” When Galbraith finally woke up and called the President back, the President said, “Tell that woman I want her here at the White House.” 

        Workers with this kind of dedication are hard to find these days. A trip to virtually any fast food restaurant will have you wondering whether workers even view themselves as employees. It seems that most people simply believe they are just entitled to a pay check for showing up. There’s barely a drive to serve in many professions, let alone a drive to serve well. 

       Christians are to be different than the world, and this of course is true when it comes to work. Christians ought to follow the advice of Solomon, who said, “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest” (Ecclesiastes 9:10). As the old saying goes, if it is worth doing, it is worth doing well. More than this though, Christians are to live to a high standard because of the one for whom they work: “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men” (Colossians 3:23). Christians work for the Lord first, and ought to act accordingly. 

       This has two obvious applications. First, we ought we ought to give the best that we possibly can in every worthwhile endeavour. Whether we are a student, an employee, a boss, or retired, we have an obligation to live as though the Lord is our employer. Second, like Ms. Wilson, we ought to keep our priorities straight. It does no good to say that we are serving the Lord in the workplace if our work pulls us from our service to Christ. When an employer asks us to fall short of God’s standard such as by asking us to regularly miss church services or to compromise our principles to make a sale, “We ought to obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29). 

       Ms. Wilson was a worker who had conviction in her service to Mr. Galbraith. If only we could have that same kind of conviction in our service to God! Our service to the Lord will probably keep us out of the White House (or The Lodge, which I am told is the Australian Prime Minister’s Official Residence), but we can be sure of home in heaven if we remain faithful to the one for whom we work (John 14:1-3). 

~Patrick Swayne