Sunflower Seeds logo

Sunflower Seeds

 

Celebrating Everyday Spirituality

Sunflower Seeds

Celebrating Everyday Spirituality

A Reflection on Labor

As we celebrate another Labor Day in this country, I’d like to share a few words about labor.

Some of us have a very negative attitude toward labor. We traditionally hate Mondays—because it means we have to go back to work.  We sing TGIF on Fridays because it means the weekend is coming.  But scripture has a more positive and healthy attitude toward work.

In the opening pages of Genesis, for example, we see something quite remarkable: God is working! And what is God doing? God is fashioning the universe. And why is God working? To share God’s love with others. And how does God work? Not angrily or begrudgingly, but joyfully and enthusiastically. After each day’s work, God looks at what he’s created and pronounces it good. After each day’s work, God rests too. And on the seventh day, God takes the whole day off!

In the gospels, Jesus works too. Tradition says he was a carpenter until about age 30 when he began his public ministry, a ministry filled with long hours of preaching, teaching, healing, traveling, and being jostled by throngs of people. But Jesus took time from his busy schedule to pray and to spend time with his apostles and with friends such as Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. In other words, he balanced work with leisure.

Sometimes our attitude toward work is negative because we aren’t balancing work with leisure. To achieve this balance is a real challenge in our fast-paced world, a world where downsizing often means we have more to do at work than ever before. (The fact that you have taken time to read this “spiritual reflection” is a sign that you’re balancing your busy-ness with prayer!)

Or maybe we’re negative toward our work because we’ve lost the WHY of our work. Most of us work first of all to support ourselves and our families. We must never lose sight of this WHY. My Dad was a tool and die maker. He taped the pictures of us four kids inside the lid of his tool chest at work. Why? It was a reminder to him of why he was working so hard. In the end, it all boils down to love!

And finally, to improve our attitude toward work we must connect our work to serving people. A young mother was totally frustrated and exhausted while caring for her baby. She complained to the parish priest, “I’m sick and tired of changing diapers!” He listened compassionately but then said gently, “Next time don’t change the diaper. Change the baby.” Whether we’re writing a report, sitting at a meeting, serving a customer, repairing a car, or mopping the kitchen floor, can we see our work as one small way we are serving others?

This Labor Day my wish for all of us is this: May we see work in a positive light as an expression of our love and service of others. And may we find creative ways to balance our work with rest and play!

What is your attitude toward work? How successful are you with balancing work and leisure?

6 Responses

  1. Thank you, Sister, for that gentle reminder. I will try to remember to see my job in a more positive light — it is, after all, my means to have the life I want. God Bless you!

    Candice

  2. I really like this and have shared with my friends. Hopefully they will gain a new prespective on their work.

    Blessings!

  3. DEAR MELANNIE, THIS IS JUST BEAUTIFUL ABOUT WORK!
    BEING A “VOLUNTEER” IS GREAT. IT GIVES ME TIME TO
    WORK AT MY OWN PACE, SMELL THE ROSES , AND JUST SMILE AND BE GENTLE ALONG THE WAY.
    SO TO ALL YOU HARD-WORKERS OUT THERE…..YOUR DAY WILL COME!!!!!!!!!
    HOPE YOUR RETREAT WAS GREAT, MELANNIE.
    LUV MAGGIE

  4. Melannie what a gentle and refreshing look on our labor/work/ministry and what it means. Have a wonderful Labor Day weekend.
    love,
    Mo

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest Blog Posts

One thing I like about praying: anything goes. I didn’t always believe this. As a little girl, I thought praying was mostly something you did in church on Sundays, or something you did before eating supper, or you did kneeling beside your bed every night. I didn’t realize that anything

Some of us will experience a total eclipse of the sun on Monday, April 8, 2024. The Cleveland, Ohio area is in its direct path. We will be privileged to witness this astronomical phenomenon from 1:59.20 PM to 4:28.57 PM (EST) (How’s that for pinpoint accuracy!) Even if our typical

Meet Sr. Melannie

Hi and welcome to my blog! I’m Sister Melannie, a Sister of Notre Dame residing in Chardon, Ohio, USA. I’ve been very lucky! I was raised in a loving family on a small farm in northeast Ohio. I also entered the SNDs right after high school. Over the years, my ministries have included high school and college teaching, novice director, congregational leadership, spiritual direction, retreat facilitating, and writing. I hope you enjoy “Sunflower Seeds” and will consider subscribing below. I’d love to have you in our “sunflower community.” Thank you!

Subscribe to Blog

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Loading

Upcoming Events

Finding God in the Ordinary and Amazing: An Afternoon with Sister Melannie

Sunday, May 19, 2024 – 1:30 – 4:00 Central – via zoom

Sponsored by the Portiuncula Center for Prayer – Frankfort, Illinois

Fee: Donation

For details visit: [email protected]

Weekend retreat at Villa Maria Education and Spirituality Center, Pulaski, PA
October 11-13, 2024

October 11-13, 2024

Details to follow

Retreat with the Sisters of Loretto, Nerinx, KY
September 8-13, 2024

September 8-13, 2024

Details to follow

Retreat at Lial Renewal Center, Whitehouse, OH
August 11-18, 2024

August 11-18, 2024

Retreat at Heartland Center for Spirituality, Great Bend, KS
April 14-19, 2024

April 14-19, 2024

Details to follow

First Friday Club in Youngstown, Ohio
April 4, 2024

April 4, 2024

Details to be determined

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.