Rev. Dr. Devin Strong

Spirit of Peace Lutheran Church

Labor Day is almost upon us. It is more than an extra day off at the end of Summer.

Launched on September 5, 1882 with a parade of 10,000 workers in New York City, the modern labor movement began as a protest against low wages and poor working conditions in factories. As our young country moved from an agrarian base to an industrial base, the wealth gap between management and workers grew wider until frontline workers made some noise. Labor Day became a federal holiday in 1894 as workers increasingly began to organize themselves into labor unions. By the 1950’s, one-third of all Americans claimed membership in a union. Today that number is about ten percent, though unions are getting a bit more attention lately.

I grew up in Detroit in the 1970’s. Many of my parents’ friends worked for one of the “big three:” GM, Ford, or Chrysler, and opinions in labor unions varied widely depending on which side of the table that you sat on. Workers were very grateful for all that the unions did, including fighting for the eight-hour workday, paid healthcare and pensions, and worker safety laws, while people in management or those outside the unions complained about union corruption, like no-show jobs and the hassle of needing to find a union worker to do the simplest task. My own take is that all human beings are sinful, so if you have two equally powerful groups negotiating against one another, you probably have the best chance to keep the worst of sin in check and arrive at a fair middle ground.

Folks at Spirit of Peace know that I just finished preaching a four-part sermon series about developing a healthy theology of Sabbath because we stink at resting or making time or God, so it’s ironic that I would turn around and so quickly write a column about work, but meaningful work is the flipside of the Sabbath coin, and both rest and work are necessary for the life that God wants for us.

Of course, not all meaningful work is paid work. Some people labor outside the home just to pay their bills while their true vocations in life are their volunteer work or their hobbies. Others, like me, are blessed to find what they love to do and get paid for it, so that our work and our vocations are one and the same. What is essential for all Christians is to find a way to consistently use our God-given gifts to make a positive difference in the world. The Lord did not gift you with any skills that are “extra” that you can afford to waste. YOU are God’s hands and feet in the world. God needs you to use your skills for the sake of others.

So let’s not waste our time piddling around or wearing ourselves out on tasks that make us miserable; find what you love to do, and do it to make your neighbor’s life better! And while you are at it, raise a glass on Monday to those in the labor movement who marched to make work better for everybody.