As a child, I was sometimes surprised by negative attitudes adults had about work. First, there were the Garfield cartoons everywhere: “I hate Mondays!” Then in the lunchroom, there was a calendar on the wall in the serving line and at the end of every day a cafeteria worker would put a huge “X” through the day. For some reason, seeing a month with three rows of Xs seemed terribly negative to me, as if you killed the days, or burned them, or wrecked them somehow. I was shocked thinking all the adults around me hated their jobs.
Not everyone agrees. My friend Dwayne, a fourth-grade teacher, loves Mondays because he loves his students and can’t wait to launch a new week. There are people who would rather “seize the day” than kill it, who truly value opportunities and challenges.
There was even a time when I used to say things like “Every morning when my OPPORTUNITY CLOCK goes off, I jump out of bed and….” It seemed wrong to me that we use the adjective “alarm” to modify the word “clock.” Why is it ALARMING, exactly? Shouldn’t we be thankful to see another day? Could we be excited for the weeks to come, realizing the amazing lives God has given us? Consider the way God describes work to Aaron:
“I am giving you the work of the priesthood as a gift” Numbers 18:7.
Do you see work as a gift? God can help you enjoy all your days and your labor, as promised in Ecclesiastes 5:19. Ask God to give you the gift of enjoying your work, Ecclesiastes 3:13. Give thanks in everything (1 Thess. 5:18), because it all begins with a grateful heart.
God, give us thankful hearts that see work as a GIFT! Help us look forward to mornings and Mondays and to realize every day how blessed we are to have the ability and opportunity to work. Fill us with joy and hope and help us spread that positive, optimistic light to everyone!
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