Why Do You Work?

HT: Stephen Nichols

Why do you work? I once heard a rather depressing answer that went something like this: “We get a job so we can buy our kids shoes, so they can go to school, so they can get a job someday, so that they can buy their kids shoes, so that they … ” In other words, work is meaningless. In fact, from this perspective life itself becomes rather meaningless—simply an endless cycle.

I’ve also heard it said that we work so that we can support ministries that do the real work—kingdom work. Now, I’m not opposed to giving to ministries. In fact, I think you can make a strong biblical case that we are obligated to do so. But I wonder if this fully captures the meaning of work.

So again, why do you work? I find the start of the answer in Psalm 104. Psalm 104 is a reflection on creation and maybe even a further reflection on the flood of Genesis 6–8. We see the psalmist poetically describing not just God’s creation of the earth and of all creatures, but we also see God’s intimate work in sustaining His creation and the creatures He made (vv. 1–13).

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