What are you working for? No, that is not a rhetorical question. Are you working to exist, to live from one day to the next? Are you working to save money and acquire more possessions? Are you working out of passion or necessity?
We all must work to provide for our families. The cost of housing, food, and clothing—the bare necessities—costs continue to increase. If we want to provide anything beyond those, we must be better qualified and work more to provide a higher quality of life.
Back to the original question, what are you working for? Despite what we may think, most of us are working to acquire more. That is not bad, in and of itself, but it can be detrimental to our health and well-being. When it becomes an addiction to gain more, causing us to work more, wearing ourselves down, our health suffers. Balance is needed in our lives.
To acquire balance, we must set priorities. One priority that will help ground us is walking and working with Jesus. Learning who He is and what He desires for us is the first step. As we start our learning, we can begin working for Him. We can set priorities based on what we learn from Jesus. We learn to live with what God has blessed us with. Not that we should want any less for our families, but we work for something beyond this life—eternity.
The truth of the matter is all the possessions we work for in this world will disappear. They will erode, rot, be tossed in the trash heap, and be of no further use. Our eternal home will last forever. Working for something that will never be destroyed should be our goal.
The balance we really want, even if we won’t consciously admit it, is working toward our eternal home with Jesus while we pass through this world. It is what will satisfy us forever. It will bring about the balance we seek and need. Our souls will find peace beyond understanding. Oh, we still need food, water, clothing, and shelter, but God will provide those (Matthew 6:28-34).
I pray we all seek balance. I pray we work for Jesus. I pray each one of us will seek to learn more about Jesus to find the balance we need. Work for what cannot be destroyed. Seek to know more about Jesus. Find balance for your life. Find the peace you desire.
John 6:26-27 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
Marty Pressey 