LABOR DAY

Man has found hundreds of things to commemorate from “Towel Day” in May to “National Ice Cream Day” in July.  In fact there is even a “National Ice Cream Sandwich Day” in August.  Does that sound frivolous to you?  Not all commemorated days are so lighthearted.  For instance take “Memorial Day” where we take time to honor the fallen soldiers who fought for our freedom on foreign and domestic soil.  Today I would like to ponder the upcoming day commemorated to give us rest from our labors, “Labor Day”.

Labor Day is a holiday that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers. It was first nationally recognized in 1894 to placate unionists following the Pullman Strike.  Following the deaths of a number of workers at the hands of the U.S. military and U.S. Marshals during the Pullman Strike, the United States Congress unanimously voted to approve rush legislation that made Labor Day a national holiday and it was signed into law by President Grover Cleveland just six days after the end of the strike.  The legislation set the celebration activities as follows:  A street parade was given to exhibit the strength and spirit of the people in the labor organizations followed by a festival for the workers and their families including speeches by prominent men and women.  Today the holiday is generally viewed as time to celebrate a break (rest) from labor, for barbeques, end of summer vacations, and the starting of the school year.

The importance of resting and commemorating rest from labor is not originally man’s idea.  It was first recognized by God in that He rested after creating the earth and universe (Genesis 2:2).  He then set apart one day a week to commemorate the completion of creation and established it as a day of rest (Genesis 2:3).  He also promised His rest to us (Hebrews 4) when we believe and rely on Him, unlike the Israelites who harden their hearts and did not enter into the rest He prepared for them (Hebrews 3:11).

“Let us therefore be zealous and exert ourselves and strive diligently to enter that rest of God, to know and experience it for ourselves, that no one may fall or perish by the same kind of unbelief and disobedience into which those in the wilderness fell.” – Hebrews 4:11 AMP

As we celebrate this extended weekend with our families, let us remember to thank God for the rest He provides even in the midst of the turmoil this world exhibits.

STEP WHERE I STEP

“Righteousness shall go before Him and shall make His footsteps a way in which to walk.”  (Psalm 85:13)  (All scripture quotes in this article are from the AMP Bible.)

I recently watched a movie where four men were trekking through a snowy wilderness.  The snow they were going through was about 1-2 feet deep and one of the men had injured his knee.  He struggled to walk let alone negotiate moving through snow.  What made it possible for him to keep up with the others is that he was last in line.  The first man made a bit of a trough with his body as he pushed forward snow as well as making dents in the snow with each footstep.  The second man made the trough and the footstep dents a little wider and deeper, as did the third man, so that when the fourth injured man came he was not hindered by the snow, but only by his injury.  Of the four, the first man is the one who had the hardest job but his hard work made the way for the rest.  This got me to thinking about Psalm 85:13 and I began to see Jesus as the “lead Man” making the way of righteousness for us in this cold and stormy world of sin.

How often we strive to be righteous; how often we try our very best to witness to those around us who do not know Jesus.  We try and try as we struggle through this world which is full of people who spurn us and even hate us.  We become frustrated with how they do not respond to the very things we find wonderful about our Lord.  We see them walk away unchanged and we feel as if we have failed God.  When you really think about it (with your spirit instead of your reasoning mind) you realize that we have failed Him!  He never asked us to go out on our own.  Think about it, did he ever ask us to do anything out of self-effort?  What he DID say is “follow Me”.

“…follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men!”  -Matthew 4:19

“…Jesus said to him, Follow Me…” -Matthew 8:22

“…come, be My disciple …and follow Me” –Matthew 19:21

“…follow Me…” –Mark 2:4; Luke 9:23; Luke 18:22; John 1:43; John 21:19 and many other verses!  Check it out in your concordance.

Not only did Jesus say to follow Him, Paul said to the Corinthian Church to follow him as he followed Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1) and the same to Timothy (2 Timothy 1:13).  I think that we read His words, “follow Me”, we hear it as a call to accept Him as our Savior, we come to know redemption, we become giddy in the joy it is to know we are free, and then we TRY to get others around us to know this freedom too.  We go door-to-door witnessing, tell everyone around us that Jesus saves, and try to get people to come to church with us.  These are all good things to do – that is – if God directs us to do them and we are not doing them out of our own efforts.  Think of it in the analogy of our four men in the snow:  what if the second man set off on his own, thinking he sees a shorter way to their destination.  The remaining two follow the first for a while when the man between the leader and the injured man sets off on his own thinking he sees an easier way to their destination.  The injured man then had a decision to make.  Would he follow the original leader, the second man, or the third?  Logic dictates he would follow the original leader, but if anything, what man does is not always logical.  In the movie I watched the leader move on as each of the men went off alone and eventually died.  If only they had stayed with the leader, they might have all made it out of that snowy wilderness alive.

If only we would stay with our Leader.  If only we would quit trying to do His work our own way, in our own efforts, and in the way we think is best.  If only…!  Our relationship to Him is the key.  Consider these words by Oswald Chambers, “The main thing about Christianity is not the work we do, but the relationship we maintain and the atmosphere produced by that relationship.”  Our effectiveness is not in the great and many works we do for our Lord, but is instead in the outpouring that bursts forth from our continual daily relationship we share with Him.  As we spend more and more time with Him, we begin to see His footsteps clearly and start stepping in them.  As we step in them we find our way made easier and grow to KNOW that what He promised is a sure thing.  As we step in His steps failure is taken off the table and victory is assured.  Are you ready to step in His steps?  I am!

“If anyone serves Me, he must continue to follow Me [to cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and, if need be, in dying] and wherever I am, there will My servant be also. If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.” – John 12:26