Reclaiming Life/Work Balance

Ready for a restart is the name of our April series. Good morning everybody. My name is René, one of the pastors here at TLC and as we start I just have to show you a great video that kind of swept the internet this past week. This sheep is stuck in a ditch and it takes the shepherd like an hour to get the sheep out and then the sheep is finally free and joyfully bounds right back into the ditch again.

That is so great I just have to watch it one more time. The shepherd gets the sheep out, the sheep is so happy that it jumps into the ditch. Okay one more time in slow motion. I'm free, I'm stuck. You know I looked at that video and I thought to myself somehow that looks really familiar. Where have I seen that before? Oh yeah, me right? My life. So many times I don't know about you but God has gotten me out of ditches and I have just plunged right back into them again.

And here's why I bring this up. As I said ready for a restart is the name of our series in April. This is all about getting a restart in areas where I might have grown a little bit stale, fallen into some bad habits during the pandemic. Let's restart together but the biggest hurdle to a restart is the thought I've tried to change before and it doesn't work. God has gotten me out of ruts but when I get out of ruts I'm like that sheep. I just fall right back into the rut again.

In fact let's take a look at that video one more time. I relate to this. God has gotten me out of ruts and I leap back into the ruts again so I'm not even gonna try to change. I just gotta tell you that kind of thinking that's just inevitable it's gonna happen again so I may not even try to change. That is the biggest enemy to a restart. Restart is not about perfection. Restart in life is about direction. Heading in a positive direction of course.

You and I are going to fall into trouble again but Jesus is still the Good Shepherd and he's always going to be there as Adrian said at the end of his message last week is "mercies are new every morning." So don't worry about perfection. Worry about direction and let's restart together. Week one of this series Mark talked about rekindling my relationships. Week two last week Adrian talked about replacing bad habits with good. This week I'm going to talk to you about reclaiming my work-life balance.

This is so important and I want to start with a story. One day my wife and I are in Monterey for a day off and we ducked into a little bakery which was jammed with customers which is a good sign it was apparently legendary for its bread and behind the counter is this little old man from Italy. I found out later he was there to help his Italian immigrant son operate the bakery for a few weeks but he's an elderly man and he reminded me so much of my little Swiss Italian aunt Pia.

Her maiden name was Biomaccia and she spoke with this beautiful Swiss Italian accent and that's exactly what this gentleman sounded like and he was just having a great time. He was putting the bread into bags and he was whistling as he worked he was greeting customers who came in chow baby. So I'm waiting in this long line as my wife and I get to the front I said I just got to say you really love your job don't you? That is so rare to see these days that is so great to see and he stops and he looks at me and he says you say I love him a job? I love him a job?

He says this up is a no job this is a life. He stares me down I'm going what's happening and he looks at me and he takes out of his pocket this old piece of paper that was folded and creased years old probably he carries it around with him apparently goes let me read to you a poem and as the line is forming longer behind us we're looking at each other he unfolds this piece of paper reverently and he begins to read this this is the exact poem he read because I asked him if I could take a cell phone picture of it later and here's the lines he read to me he said be gentle when you touch bread let it not lie uncared for unwanted so often bread is taken for granted.

There is so much beauty in bread beauty of Sun and soil beauty of patient toil and at this point he starts tearing up tears are rolling down his face winds and rain caressed it Christ often blessed it so be gentle when you touch bread he chokes back a sob he reverently folds the piece of paper back up puts it in his pocket takes a deep breath and says now how can I help you and I said you already have because just seeing someone with that kind of sense of purpose and meaning and joy and love in work just refresh my spirit so much it inspired me so much that today I'm announcing my resignation to go become a baker no not really but didn't you would don't you think that in that man we see what God intends all of us to have in terms of our relationship with work?

I believe that God wants your work and my work to be part of your flourishing not just something you do to earn a paycheck and part of the flourishing of others and this is in fact a major theme of the Bible. The message today isn't just about me finding a few proof texts you know for my points this whole idea of work being a part of your flourishing is a major theme of Scripture let me show you work was part of paradise in the Garden of Eden in Genesis that says the Lord God took man and put him in the Garden of Eden to watch this work it and take care of it.

So work is not just the result of you know original sin not only was work part of paradise work will be part of heaven the Bible says in Isaiah 65 God speaking then I will create a new heavens at a new earth and watch what is happening that we're not just floating around on dry ice playing harps they will build houses plant vineyards eat their fruit so architecture you know craftsmanship skilled labor viticulture agriculture it's all happening in work is happening in heaven that means work is not just some necessary evil work can be amazingly good yet the reality today is that work is a burden to so many.

You might relate to these verses from the book of Ecclesiastes where the writer says I undertook great projects so this isn't somebody in poverty this is somebody doing important jobs but I hated life that's quite a statement I hate my life why did he hate his life because he was in misery because he was sick because he was ill in poverty no I hated life because the work that is done under the Sun was grievous to me.

I an unhealthy relationship with his job with his work made him hate all of life and the truth is a lot of Americans maybe you feel this way right now I just saw a recent survey said 81% of Americans are quote unhappy with my work-life balance this was taken just a couple of weeks ago why? Well another survey said that 70% of Americans who began working remotely in 2020 because of the pandemic are now also working weekends as a story about this on NBC News said we are now in work mode indefinitely right we feel this utter exhaustion of the new endless grind and maybe you can relate to that that is a rut that a lot of us have gotten into during this last year of pandemic.

What's the solution to that how can I find fulfillment and meaning in work that doesn't exhaust me? Here's the good news you don't necessarily need a new job but you probably do need a new framework for your job a new way to frame it to contextualize it and so in today's message I want to look through scripture at three ways that the Bible recontextualizes or reframes work and when I say work I mean this applies to everybody no matter if you if you got kind of a traditional I'm working you know five days a week 40 hours a week but this also applies if you're a stay-at-home parent or a student or retired or you're a caregiver for a loved one to any kind of work it applies if you work as a barista in the mornings a receptionist in the afternoons and do your two side hustles in between any kind of work these three principles from the Bible about about recontextualizing reframing the way I look at work are so relevant to all of us you can download these at TLC org slash notes.

TLC org slash notes let's dig into them number one I need to reframe the rhythm of my work reframe the rhythm the daily weekly annual rhythms of my work let me explain it this way I love to run when I was in school I ran cross-country and track and I'm still kind of a weekend warrior I actually try to get out there at least every other day I love it but occasionally some of my friends based on my enthusiasm for running hiking walking have picked it up and I'll be honest most of them have said René you can have it running is not for me.

Why? Well here's my suspicion if you Google mistakes beginning runners make every single article you find will name these three common mistakes at least number one starting too fast literally when you're running when you're working out when you're hiking starting at too fast a pace and within a few hundred yards just feeling like you're exhausted good runners know to set a steady sustainable pace whether they're racing or working out next going too long thinking I'm gonna change my life I'm gonna start running and you try to run five miles you go for too long of a hike and after a week you're just exhausted and you're done with it and then not taking recovery time.

All the running gurus say that if you want to do good in running you've got to take at least one day a week to stretch to not get out there and run ironically if you want to be a better runner you have to take a day a week to not run well look at these three points starting too fast going too long no recovery time these exact same three principles apply to work and work-life balance check this out so many scriptures that could show you but here's one from Proverbs 21:5 steady plotting brings prosperity this means set a sustainable pace this is a marathon not a sprint look at Proverbs 23:4 do not wear yourself out to get rich don't start too fast don't go too long and take recovery time.

The Bible says in the 10 commandments six days you shall labor and do all your work but the seventh day is a Sabbath. Sabbath just means rest it can also mean delight it's a day to rest and delight to the Lord your God on it you shall not do any work the whole principle of taking a day off a week that's one of the Ten Commandments it's amazing now of course it's possible to get legalistic about this and completely drain the concept of joy but I love the way John Mark Comer who's a pastor up in Portland puts it in his great book the ruthless elimination of hurry I strongly recommend this book we carry it here in the TLC book store just at cost it's really influenced me this year on this but he has a great quote he says here's the point with Sabbath the idea is that God built a rhythm into the DNA of creation a tempo work six days rest one.

Now listen in case this is making you feel a burden in cases is making you feel guilty because this is not always possible for you let me just put your mind at rest temporary imbalance is inevitable it was in Bible times too of course you know when it was harvest time it was all hands on deck 24/7 when you have a little baby obviously your rhythm is going to be thrown temporary imbalance seasonal imbalance is inevitable in life permanent imbalance however is fatal and when you feel that start to creep up you need to make some changes.

Let me tell you a story from my own life about this before I studied to be a pastor I worked in radio and one day I was just so burned out I walked into my program directors office and said I quit my job is too much for me and he said a line that truly changed my life I've applied this line so many times in my life after this he said René sometimes when you feel like quitting you just need a break and he didn't just speak this as some sort of an aphorism he said so take two weeks off starting now.

Now I was only halfway through my shift that day and I said but I still got all this work to do and he said I will take over the rest of your shift or I will find somebody else to work it go to the parking lot get in your car see you in two weeks and you know what's funny even though I was exhausted I resisted it I tried to argue with him I don't need this I don't want to and he said René see in two weeks.

Well I got in my car I left and guess what I came back two weeks later totally refreshed now this is a true principle but most of us are not gonna have a boss that says you know what I think you need a break right now so that means you and I need to self initiate and take responsibility for this especially now during this pandemic season with so many us are still working from home even if your boss was tender-hearted and kind and sensitive they're not in your house they're not looking over your shoulder to see how hard you are working so this means you have to self initiate like don't sit at the laptop ten hours straight take breaks and self advocate tell your boss tell your spouse tell your friends hey you know what I need a break you'll never know how sympathetic they will be unless you try and you'll probably be surprised.

Reframe the rhythm of your work make it sustainable we hear a lot about sustainability these days your work rhythms have to be sustainable now I know what's happening right now I see you there with your cup of coffee and that furrowed brow on your couch saying René good for you not realistic for me how am I supposed to do this if I'm a you know single working parent for example let me just acknowledge this is not easy but this is not impossible what I have observed growing up as a child of a single parent what I've seen work is this form a network a network of parents of people at church of neighbors and take turns giving one another breaks.

I'm gonna return to this at the end of this message but first I want to get into the second point I need to reframe the purpose of my work and this is something that Baker down in Monterey had down right why do you work think about this is it just to earn a paycheck what's the Bible say well as I looked at Scripture this week I was able to discern at least three powerful reasons that can really change your perspective on the purpose of your work first 2 Corinthians 9:11 which says you will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way in other words part of the reason I make money is to give money and this is this is so empowering this kind of sanctifies every paycheck when I look at it like part of the reason I got is enabling me to get this paycheck no matter what your job is is to help others with my earnings.

And then there's a second reason I found the Bible talks about this a lot for example and 2 Corinthians 5:20 it says we are ambassadors for Christ at work you're a representative to the people you work with of what it looks like to be a follower of Jesus now some of you are cringing at that you're going does that mean I gotta be some kind of a loudmouth evangelist and go around handing out gospel booklets look at this maybe surprising verse to you from 2 Thessalonians 4 make it your goal to live a quiet life you don't have to be an obnoxious loudmouth minding your own business literally that means your work it's not like mind your business and mind your business your work pay attention to it be competent right be faithful to it working with your hands as opposed to just always looking for a handout being lazy work with your hands apply yourself then people who are not believers will respect the way you live.

Another biblical purpose for work is to represent Jesus with my work ethic and then there's a third reason for your work and if you got up to make coffee or you're checking sports course like Adrian is over here right now look up here for just a second because I bet you you have never thought of this I've never thought of this until I read about it in a book I'm about to recommend to you here's the idea God creates right God created the world and when I create anything whether it's a nice workspace or a report for work or a line of software code I am mirroring God's creativity.

Now you might have thought of that but here's the next level concept here God did not just create the world God also sustains the world right providentially with his reign with the sunshine with the seasons of the year you know for planting and for harvest and so on God sustains the world this is part of what theologians call common grace now listen to this you and your work are part of the way God sustains the world part of the way God takes care of people is through your work.

Look at these verses from Isaiah chapter 28 in the Bible this blew my mind I'll be honest with you I'd actually never really studied these verses before in my life this this is a chapter about God's provision for his people and you know we all know God provides us I said through through nature sunshine rain and so on but then it goes further it says and when a farmer plows for planting when he has leveled the surface does he not plant wheat in its spot barley in its plot spelt that's another kind of a grain in its field his God instructs him and teaches him the right way and then grain must be ground to make bread all this also comes from the Lord Almighty whose plan is wonderful whose wisdom is magnificent.

This is so cool do you see what this is saying all this also is part of God's plan the farmer farming the miller milling the baker baking that's just as much a part of God's provision as the sunshine and the rain and that means part of the purpose of your work is to be part of God's common grace part of how God is caring for the people he loves is through your work for example excuse me if you're a stay-at-home parent obviously part of how God is caring for your children is through that work if you're a doctor you're part of how God is caring for your patients things like that or farmers might be a little bit more obvious what if you're a mechanic you are part of how God is caring for the people who need their vehicles to provide for their families God is providing through your work just just as much as he's providing through the rain and the sunshine.

Let me talk about some professions that are close to my family what if you're a software engineer like our oldest son who works on these the Apple watches well God is making you a part of how he is caring for people who for example can learn to stay healthy through the health software on that watch God is caring for them through your work or what about working at an HR firm like our daughter does God is helping people find jobs to support their families through your work what about if you work as a barista like our youngest son not only are you providing food and drink but also social connection which is so important to human beings and this is true for your job to whatever it is there is so much to say about this I really want to recommend some Keller's book every good endeavor connecting your work to God's work the whole book is about this I highly recommend it it'll blow your mind and it will inspire you it'll help you reframe the purpose of your work.

Now before our third point and our final point I just want to introduce you to a couple here at TLC who have both discovered this the power of purpose at work this is Fred and Esther Yoon Fred is a detective with the Santa Cruz Police Department and Esther works for an app you may have heard of called zoom and they both have discovered the power of this and I want to show you just part of my conversation with them this past Thursday watch this well it's a real privilege to be on a zoom call with Esther and Fred Yoon thank you guys so much for joining me thanks for having us and Elijah and Elijah how did I not say Elijah was almost the exact same age as Emmett our grandson 2020 was a stressful year for all of us but the two careers you to represent Fred and Esther were particularly stressful.

Esther I think it would be interesting for people to hear what it was like at zoom here you are sort of the product evangelist for this zoom meeting project that very few people in the world have heard about January 2020 by March and April 2020 I think the whole world was using your product what was that like at work a little stressful stressful stuff a great word I like to occasionally say felt like I was being waterboarded but you know in the end it really shined a light on you know showing the power of purpose and I'm gonna go into the and now I'm gonna reuse the analogy that you've used which is you know money and the correlation to happiness and how when you spend it on yourself you know yes you get short-term happiness when you spend it on others it's true happiness that is profound and substantial and I think the same goes for time and effort and how it correlates to output and energy.

We were all working for ourselves when COVID hit we all the whole company had a mental shift where we're like we are no longer doing video conferencing to increase sales revenue we are providing a service that helps teachers connect with their students that helps hospitalized patients have Christmas and Thanksgiving with their family have you know five-year-olds have birthday parties and the output that came out of that purpose as a collective was just unbelievable it was a multiple it was a multiplier effect you know what we were doing we were probably doing 10x 30x just because with the same amount of people because I think we had a sense of purpose and mission.

Fred working for a police department in 2020 the stress that must have entailed - Marine I know you know my background I used to be in banking and I decided to do you know 180 career change and Fred I understand you actually have a degree in corporate finance yes I do but now you're working as a detective at the police force so yeah describe how you why you made that shift yeah so there was a time in my previous career where I you know felt like I wanted to make an impact and help people my community can I have a proud wife moment because he literally like dropped his job cold turkey started volunteering for the city police department as a community service officer and then from there started his career path to be in law enforcement because he was like I need to do something so proud wife moment absolutely it's been hard but at the same time like you find ways to get through the disparaging comments the you know the getting called racist things on a daily basis like you get you know you push yourself through it right I do yeah tell me about that.

Yeah with that going on the protests the political climate it was definitely very it was a eating at me or you know very heavy it was a strain on my stress level every time I'm down to dumps or overstressed or this too much anxiety going on department I just sit and pray and you know just give all that trouble to God and if you give me peace you know that's the only way to get actual peace is through the Bible through you know having relationship with Jesus and that's the only way I and if anyone ever asked me like how they can get ultimate peace that's the only way they can get that.

What Fred said right there at the end dovetails so perfectly and our third and final point I must reframe the Lord of my work the Lord of my work watch this from a wonderful verse Colossians 3:23 it says whatever you do whatever it is whatever your job is work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord not for human masters since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward it is the Lord Christ you are serving and this is huge you know so much of our work if we're honest can't be about wanting to hear others say in effect I really approve of you as a human being you know you do such a good job you are so productive meaning you are so valuable but when you make Jesus the Lord of your work you can rest from that.

Because think about this what do we believe about Jesus long before you did anything long before you did anything at work long before you did any act of charity long before you did anything to quote unquote prove your worth long before you were even created Jesus knew his plan that he would give his life that he would sacrifice himself on the cross and rise again so your sins can be forgiven completely by his grace and so that he can give you as a gift not something that you're earned by your work performance but as a gift of grace eternal abundant life.

When you really realize that when you soak in that it really does change everything you know we can talk about this yes it's the Lord Christ I am serving but but are we really can I just get real personal and real honest with you the last few weeks before Easter I hit a brick wall I was so stressed in my work precisely because I was not really practicing any of these things I mean maybe vaguely I was thinking about the purpose of my work but the rhythm of my work was just blown to bits for a year of the pandemic I was working like many of you 10 12 hours a day rarely taking a day off and and I have to tell you I was getting short-tempered sleepless full of anxious thoughts all the time I was on an unsustainable pace and I had to pull the emergency break and I don't mean break br ake I mean break br ake pull the emergency break and the past two weeks were kind of an unplanned two weeks off.

But I just want to thank so many of the pastors here Adrian and Mark and Val and Sarah Jessica Dan Mark Alinga our video producer Jamie Rahm and others who all took like five to ten percent of my job so that I could take a rest now why did that happen to me when I know better I'm a sheep and I jumped right back into that rut and it truly did get to the point where I would look down at my hands and they were shaking all the time like I said I wasn't sleeping so I took that break to get back on a sustainable rhythm but something much more important happened I realized that I needed to recommit my life to the care of Jesus as the Lord of my work life and to mark that kind of draw a line in the sand I began a new habit to remind myself of my recommitment to Christ as the Lord of my work every night now when I lay down to rest I pray slowly through Psalm 23 and you probably know how it starts the Lord is my shepherd I have all that I need he makes me lie down in green pastures doesn't say he makes me mow the green to pass yours he makes me lie down he leads me beside still waters he restores my soul.

See what I realized was my overwork was a lordship issue really I wasn't working for the Lord I wasn't seeing the Lord as my shepherd as my boss as my master because if I had he would have made me lie down a green pastures I would have listened to his voice as he kept trying to lead me beside still waters I would have allowed him to restore my soul I thought of myself as a hard worker but really I was a sheep running from the care of the Good Shepherd just kind of doing my own thing thinking I knew best but I as your pastor had to get real serious about my spiritual life and recommit myself re-surrender my life to the care of a Good Shepherd.

Now maybe I'm the only one in our church that needs to do this but let me just ask you a question do you have something similar in your life have you gotten into some similar rut maybe it's overwork or maybe for you it's constant doom scrolling of the negative news feeds or maybe for you it's it's you become addicted to anger all the time or something else can I just urge you to see that it is a lordship issue I urge you return to the Good Shepherd and listen to his voice not the voice of culture the voice of society to his voice alone let him lift you out of whatever rut you're in and he will lead you to green pastures and still waters and he'll restore your soul he cares more about that much more than he cares about what you think is so important on that to-do list he really does because he loves you so much.

Now maybe this is something you need to recommit but maybe for the very first time you want to make a commitment to Jesus as your Good Shepherd whether it's a first-time commitment or a recommitment I invite you to make that profession of faith right now as we pray together what a good way to restart would you bow in a word of prayer with me Lord Jesus you are the Good Shepherd you don't overwork your sheep and so I want to return to you as my boss my Lord and I want to commit or recommit my whole life my whole self including my work life to you and I know I will fall into ruts again but I also know you're such a Good Shepherd that you will never leave me you are always there with me to lift me out again help me to follow you more each day and now God I need the peace you offer through our Lord Jesus Christ sacrifice for us all thank you in the name of Jesus we pray amen.