“…cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life…by the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return..”

―Genesis 3:17-19

Originally written to my grandson: David Lee Kemp III

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David Lee, one of my favorite authors – Jewish philosopher, Abraham Joshus Heschel – wrote in his book, Man Is Not Alone: A Philosophy of Religion, the following:

“There is not a soul on this earth which, however vaguely or rarely, has not realized that life is dismal if not mirrored in something which is lasting. We are all in search of a conviction that there is something which is worth the toil of living.”

I’m not sure he had the curse placed upon Adam (and thus all of us, especially we men) on his mind when he wrote those words, but they certainly are applicable. 

Where Adam went wrong was listening to his wife instead of God (Genesis 3:17). 

Now to clear, I am not advocating that you not listen to your wife once you’re married.   A wise man listens to his wife!  That is one of the reasons God gave him one.  But, if it comes down to heeding your wife or God, you must always go with God.  (This is true with all those you admire and listen to.)

But Adam failed the test and there were dire generational consequences.

So how was God to respond?

How was He to demonstrate that there are major negative consequences for disobeying Him? 

For Eve those consequences impacted her core relationships (Genesis 3:16 – especially her identity as a mother and a wife which, sadly, is being manifested to this very day.)

But for Adam, the major negative consequences hit him squarely in the area where we men get our greatest sense of purpose and identity: Our work.

To be clear, work is not a curse, rather, our work is cursed.

Adam’s work was taking care of God’s garden.  In other words, he was God’s caretaker and God’s representative.  He did what he did to please God and bring God joy by taking good care of what God had entrusted to him.  The result was that Adam lived in God’s paradise with a perfect wife and with perfect fellowship with God.

But he chose another path. And now…

Weeds, thistles and thorns are constantly trying to take over our work and our lives. Work is a toil, a long weary slog. 

Now, work has become about man: his glory and honor, his “stuff” (his garden/domain), and he is always checking to compare his garden against other men’s garden: “Is my garden bigger and better that the other guys?”

Cursed work is about accumulating.  Accumulating power, prestige, and prominence.  And the tragedy is that cursed work never satisfies.  There is always another mountain to climb, another dollar to make and another rung on the ladder of “success” to strive for.

But in the end, and there is an end, it is all meaningless – “Life under the sun” (Ecclesiastes. 1:3). 

So what are we to do?

First of all, the answer is not to not work (1 Timothy 5:8).  David Lee, trust me, not only should you work, you have a specific work to do.  That is one of the reasons God created you. 

The vital key will be to remember who you work for (God) and with whom you work with (your wife).  Keep those two things straight and you will find yourself doing something that is worth the toil of living. 

And one more thing, I know there are a lot of preachers in our family and I’d be delighted if you followed that path – but only if it is your God-work.  Just like Adam making the bad choice to listen to his wife instead of listening to God, you must listen above all others to the voice of God.

To summarize, whatever you do in word or deed do all for the glory of Christ.  Remember, all work, when done in response to God’s call and for Him, is sacred and noble.  God needs plumbers, and painters, and paralegals (and many other vocations) as well as preachers.

And as a heads up, God’s call is more of a journey than a single “work.” There will probably be a lot of jobs on the path of your work. Treat every job like you’re called by God to do it; treat it as sacred work and give it your very best effort (for His glory). As you do, you will discover that you are clearing the path of thorns and thistles in preparation for the next stage of God’s life-work for you to do.

For example, I have been a janitor at a fast food restaurant, a bag boy at a grocery store, a cucumber picker, cotton mill worker, and a pork skins salesman, along with several other “jobs”. No regrets with any of them; I learned something from them all and they helped build character in me and teach me vital skills that are helping me to this day.

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David Lee, over the next few years you will be making the two most important life-choices of your life: determining your purpose for being created (your God-work) and the wife who, side by side, will being joining you in that work.

I am praying diligently for you concerning these matters, and be assured, whatever and whoever you choose, I’ll be cheering for you all the way.

Love devotedly, Papa