A word for the working man and woman…

Good Tuesday morning!

Today’s new quotation is a good reminder:

  • “It should not escape us that the first individual that the Bible records who was filled with God’s Spirit is not a Patriarch, a lawgiver, a prophet, or a judge, but a craftsman, Bezalel, foreman of the tabernacle project.” _Victor P. Hamilton, Handbook on the Pentateuch, pg. 234

I take very seriously my calling and vocation of being a preacher and pastor.  For the most part I live and work in a “white-collar” world.  But there is a special place in my heart for the working man; the blue collar man (and woman).  Maybe it’s because I come from a long line of West Virginia coalminers or maybe it’s because I grew up on in the Deep South on “Mill hills”; but one thing I know – God doesn’t look at a man’s collar, He considers a man’s heart. 

When Jesus went looking for his disciples He went looking for men that were already working and most of them were involved in good, honest, hard labor. 

My point is this: The anointing of God is not just for pulpits, it is for you.  Whatever you vocation, education or hesitation – God is willing to fill you with His Spirit.  Your work can be holy work.  The labor of your head or hand can be “God-work” and can contribute to the redemptive plan of God upon this world. 

So lift up your head, square your shoulders and step out into this world with the assurance that you matter to God and He’s willing to back that up with His presence and power in your life. 

My best wishes and prayers go with you,

dlk

P.S. The other quotations on my list for today were all so good that I included them.  (See below) 

  • “A discouraged man is not an asset but a liability.” Demaray, An Introduction to Homiletics
  • “One evening as we reviewed our calendar and a stack of time-consuming opportunities, the thought came, ‘Why not prioritize everything we do on the basis of who’s going to be crying at our funeral?’  We did it.  The results saved our family.” _Patrick Morley, Leading with Billy Graham, _Jay Dennis p. 196
  • “If you don’t bring Paris with you, you won’t find it there.” _John M. Shanahan, 1939-
  • “I would venture to say that most marital difficulties center around one fact – men and women are TOTALLY different.  The differences (emotional, mental, and physical) are so extreme that without a concentrated effort to understand them, it is nearly impossible to have a happy marriage.” _Gary Smalley, If Only He Knew: Understanding Your Wife
  • “When I see the “Ten Most Wanted” list I always have this thought: If we’d made them feel wanted earlier, they wouldn’t be wanted now.” _Eddie Cantor, You can Reach the Top by Zig Ziglar, p. 96
  • “Physical contact is absolutely essential in building the emotion of love.” _Ed Wheat, Love Life For Every Married Couple
  • “Without exception, people who consistently laugh do so in spite of, seldom because of anything.  They pursue fun rather than wait for it to knock on their door in the middle of the day.” _Charles R. Swindoll, Laugh Again, p. 22
  • “Joyful people stay riveted to the present – the here and now, not the then and never.” _Charles R. Swindoll, Laugh Again, p. 26
  • “As I attempt to probe the mind of Paul, trying to find some common denominator, some secret clue to his joy, I have to conclude that it was his confidence in God.” _Charles R. Swindoll, Laugh Again, p. 26