Does anyone really like their job?
Okay, so I have had one of those weeks...months, really...when I really question what I do for 50+ hours a week.I am a teacher, and while I survive each day by making jokes and trying to have adult interaction interspersed throughout my day, I struggle from time to time. I have been really thinking about it, and I think I've figured out why teaching is unsettling for me at times.
1) I don't feel that the job I have is contributing to the kingdom of God. I teach Language Arts- interjections, independent clauses, punctuation, etc. I don't have that much opportunity to share my faith, though I try to be faithful. Maybe I am wrong about this- maybe I am making more difference than I think.
2) I don't make enough money to contribute to the kingdom of God monetarily. I work really hard, and I don't make enough money for the job I do. Yes, even with "summers off" and blah, blah, blah, I still don't make enough. Trust me. If I can't make a direct impact in the kingdom of God, I would like to at least be able to support it monetarily. My job doesn't allow for that.
Maybe the reason I am feeling this way because John Piper's Don't Waste Your Life has been a part of my regular reading activities.
So, blame it on Piper, but really, why do I stress myself out every day at a job that doesn't impact God's kingdom and can't even indirectly support it?
posted by Gina @ 9:40 PM
7 Comments:
Those kids impact you(pronoun). Sure, your care for them and their brains touches(verb) them, whether they realize it or not, but seeing(transitive verb) the needs of lost kids and those who are 'in the family' can be a daily(adjective) reminder to you of that for which the world hungers. Just a thought(noun).
Without your job...I wouldn't(contraction) have been able to read this post! :)
ps: the scrapbooking expo is this Friday and Saturday at the Gwnt civic center. Wanna go on Sat?
Love ya,
Katie
Somebody has to take out the trash.
Whether or not your actual vocation is somehow directly kingdom-related isn't relevant. We have this idea that we have to be some kind of hero -- saving the world, making a difference, etc. While this is true, the bigger problem is not whether or not you work in the kingdom, but whether the kingdom is at work in you. You are a missionary in your field, and your field, right now, is the public school system.
I'd have to say that a lot of people don't "like" their job. I think that's a modern myth as well -- that somehow your job should be something that fulfills you. I doubt the guys picking up my trash feel that way. Why should I expect to be better off than them? My responsibility is to use my talents, and provide for myself and my family, and to return to God a portion of what he's returned to me.
If we keep the focus on following Jesus, sharing life together, and investing in others (btw, that's the slogan we're about to start using at church!), things such as what we're doing to put food on the table become much less of an issue.
It sounds like you are frustrated that your impact isn't visible. But sometimes, God's calling is for you to be faithful, and that's all. You don't always get to see the fruits of your labor. These kids remember that you are a consistent, friendly teacher. Maybe you inspire them to learn more, academically and/or spiritually. Your calling (for now) may be to make enough money to provide for your own family. You are a witness for the Lord outside of work in everything you do. It's visible in you MK business, at church, scrapbooking, or having dinner with friends. If that's what God has planned for you, is that enough? Not everyone is a Superhero all the time.
I love you lots. And keep hope, maybe you will be teaching math for God later in life.
Wow, i just realized that i spent 30 min last night pouring my heart out and then didn't post my comment!
i'm in whole-hearted agreement with Derek. And i would add to that the fact that, to quote my husband quoting the Bible on your husband's blogspot, "Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives LIFE." You have the Spirit of LIFE in you, and you have the capability of imparting LIFE (shining the Light of the World) wherever you are. So b/c of the work He's doing in you, whatever you do is/can be Spiritual.
i remember that one of the things at Shorter that made me sick was this ever-present attitude that you were only "Spiritual" if you were "giving it all up" and moving to a remote part of Uganda. But what i've learned in my own life is that the Kingdom of God is furthered when i take what He's placed in my care/responsibility and do it as unto the Lord with a pure and joyful heart..."give it all up" and wash the dishes and sing when i'm SO SICK AND TIRED OF WASHING DISHES. i'm sure you know better than i do, but Middle Schools need the Kingdom of God to come there, and if there aren't followers of Jesus present, bringing it with them, i don't know how else that'll happen. So often the really "Spiritual" things in life are NOT overt. It's that quiet, gentle spirit. It's forgiving without having to get our $.02 in first. It's blessing and not cursing (when our co-workers are shallow and selfish). It's showing love, joy, peace, patience, kindess, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, especially when those things are not what the world, the flesh, and the devil would encourage you to express.
It's a cliche, but it's all about "Blooming Where You're Planted." He knows the plans He has for you, and if they include teaching middle school language arts (or taking out the trash), the He intends for the Kingdom to come some way or another in that.
Also, random side note...there are always ways to give to the Kingdom financially...no matter how much you have to give. As a random example you can buy an impoverished family two rabbits (male and female) for $15 with World Vision. You just have to decide what it is you can/want to do and adjust your lifestyle accordingly. Trust me...i know...we live debt-free as a family of 3 on a grad student income! : )
I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for contributing. I think this turned into a very challenging discussion.
You are all right- sometimes it's important to get over the complaints and just be faithful where I am, and believe me, I do that daily. If I didn't, I wouldn't survive!
I also know that we can (and do) give money to the church and overseas as we can. It's not as much as I would like to be able to give, though.
In closing, I do think it's good for me to explore these questions and keep me "comfortably uncomfortable" in my job and life, so to speak. It brings me back to a place where God is central. Thanks for helping me get there. :)
Hmm, I have read all the comments. I sincerely agree with Gina, in that I feel restless with my everyday, wear-myself-out job that I really don't feel is bringing people to the saving knowledge of Christ. I too am a teacher, but I teach 4th grade. I am frustrated. I want to be giving money to several different places/organizations. I want to be overseas, working in ministries that are only for the purpose of bringing people to Christ. My heart yearns for that. But, I am not there yet, and the Lord has not called me there yet. Instead, he has called me to get up day after day and go love on 23 people, many of whom only get a hug when they walk in my classroom door. I can't teach a lesson everyday on what it means to be a Christian, but I can treat them in such a way that maybe one day they will look back and see Love. That is the only explanation that I can see for what I do right now. Then again, who am I, that I would get to see into the future to know the fruits of my labor. I do feel I am impacting the students, but I want to do so much more. I feel as though my throat is constricted, keeping me from telling these little ones the Truth. I have also been reading Don't Waste Your Life, and it makes me want to shout the Truth from a rooftop. What more could I want for people than for them to be "glad in God".
With the hurricane having destroyed so many things, and so many people needing help, I want to give the one thing they really need...Life. How can I do that from my couch, or my classroom? I can't afford to quit my job and just walk around sharing Christ. I almost wish I was called to do that. On this end, it seems a lot better than just sitting around waiting.
Are we simply too focused on the future that we are not paying enough attention to the now? We are not promised another breath.
Hmm.
All of that rambling to say. I don't know that all of this restlessness inside of me is really because other people need to know the Lord. I am beginning to believe that this restlessness is so that I am constantly talking to God and "wrestling" with Him. I would much rather wrestle with God, than to sit contentedly through life and not know Life! Thanks for the opportunity to spill out my thoughts/struggles!
Derek is right ... making money to put food on the table and give when you are led is honorable. And teaching is a great job (even though in the public school it doesn't always seem like it). As a teacher, I ran my class (discipline, rewards, punishments, procedures) in such a way as to express the kingdom. And I prayed for my classes often. That makes a world of difference.
I would also like to point out, though, that restlessness in ones position CAN be related to God leading you somewhere else. Only you can know that based on the Spirit inside of you, but I appreciate what Heather said. Because sometimes God is trying to enact change in our hearts and lives and we're told to "suck it up" and "deal with it." I wonder what Saul and Barnabas would be told today were they to express the calling on their life to just GO and spread the gospel to a Gentile, sinful world without a missions organization behind them or any missions training!
This life is an adventure, people. It is filled with wonder and miracle. He has given us life more abundant. Follow Him. Take risks. Enjoy the life He's given you. Give freely. He'll provide!
Find joy in the work before you, but also be open to a different direction.
Peace out.
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