To be polite in awkward situations, we might try to strike up a conversation with the person next to us. We might ask, “What do you do for a living?” Admittedly, there are some answers that impress and intrigue us. Imagine the person saying, “I’m an astronaut working for NASA.” “I’m an ethical hacker working for the FBI.” “I’m a crime scene cleaner.” “I’m a voice-over actor.” You know you’re going to have a string of questions for this poor individual. Your interest and curiosity has been stirred.
A pastor was on a plane, and this kind of conversation was struck up with him. He knew that if he said he was a pastor that he might get the cold shoulder. Instead, he came up with a creative answer. Well, I work for a global enterprise. We’ve got outlets in nearly every country of the world. We’ve got hospitals and hospices and homeless shelters. We do marriage work. We’ve got orphanages, we’ve got feeding programs and educational programs. We do all sorts of justice and reconciliation things. Basically, we look after people from birth to death and we deal in the area of behavioral alteration.” The person who started the conversation said, “WOW! What’s the name of this global enterprise.” The pastor replied, “It’s called the church! I’m a pastor”1
There are also a lot of peculiar jobs out there that
would strike up a conversation. If you told someone that you were a snake milker, professional line stander, golf ball diver, or pet food taster, that might draw some quizzical looks. But, if you’ve ever wanted a “dream” job, here’s the one for you: a professional sleeper.
“Being paid to sleep sounds like a dream job — both figuratively and literally. Professional sleepers do just that, to support a range of research areas. Clients may include hotels, bed and mattress manufacturers, sleep research facilities, and pharmaceutical companies. NASA and the European Space Agency have also put out calls for professional sleepers, offering $19,000 to anyone willing to stay in bed for at least two months, to research how the body changes in weightlessness. (Those participants had to endure muscle atrophy and other physical challenges, making the job not quite as pleasant as it sounds.)”2
Many people are not working their “dream” job or the dream they had as children. Starting in about third grade, my dream job was to be an electrical engineer. I was a frequent customer of Radio Shack and Heathkit. Sometime in my 7th-8th grade year, that changed to wanting to be a thoracic surgeon. The Lord changed those plans during my first year of pre-med.
My best friend had wanted to be a professional football player, then, a race car driver. Today, he is an architect.
Dreams change – or are changed by the moving of God in our lives. And provided we are doing what God has called us to do, that is our dream job. Colossians 3:22-23 says, “Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: (23) And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.” And Ephesians 6:5-8 says, “Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ; (6) Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; (7) With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: (8) Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.”
Saturday is typically a day where we are not at work and you say, “I don’t want to even think about work!” Indulge me, though, for just a moment and think about the work God gave you to do. Think about that job. Are you working it “as unto the Lord?” Is God being glorified and magnified by your efforts?
1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 leaves us today with this thought: “And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; (12) That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing.”
1https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laaWTFPrJAs
2https://interestingfacts.com/worlds-most-bizarre-jobs/?lctg=e6fd7449-4b4d-4d27-9340-7ad6e03075f2
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