For a long time, I struggled in finding a good paying job. From the time I was five, I always knew I would work in an office job, wear office attire, do office tasks, and have weekends off. (Yes, as a kid this what I thought) My wages for working in this office would be sufficient to live on and this is what I would do for the rest of my life. I did not have a clue of what I was setting myself up for.
I based all of my thinking around what I saw the women in my family do each day while I was growing up. I did not know all the ins and outs of choosing that career path, but I figured they did not seem overly stressed so it would be the best choice for me. Wrong! From the time I started working in college all the way up to now, I have figured out that my wages will never add up to the amount of work I put in. We can all agree to not getting paid “what we are worth”. But I have also come to realize that the rewards are not always monetary either. The reward is in the work itself.
On the spiritual side, that is the total opposite. Every sin that we have worked hard on, whether it be little white lies or as big as fornication, they have given all of us a great amount of wage in return that leaves us more in debt than richer. But what I had failed to realize about sin, is that the wage is not death physically, it is Death in the relationship we have with Christ. It is Death to the bond that he built with us, those many years ago on the cross. It is Death to stability in knowing who we are. It is Death to total peace and joy in our lives. And instead it’s life to destructive habits, destructive thoughts, and destructive words. What wages are you paying?
“And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” Mark 7:20-21
We all enjoy a good payday right? Most of us base our plans for our weekends, vacations, all activities on each and every payday. Whether it is a high paying job or a low paying job, we expect the wages that we were promised. Those wages mean a lot to us, that we did something worthwhile. It means that dealing with the demands of responsibility, bosses, co-workers, customers, and basically getting ourselves in gear will amount to something. Yet, the wages in sin should never be a price we are willing to pay or be paid.
“What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:21-23
Yes, most of us only believe in the tangible things. The things that we can see physically, touch, taste…we must see it to believe it. But, we all fail to understand that we all carry a debt, not tangible, that must be re-payed. You and I were bought with a price. Our wages were satisfied by the only one who had the power to overcome all sin. So instead of putting so much emphasis on these things (job, money, sex, clothing, status, likes…), we should instead focus our attention on what is to come. And believe me, there is more ahead of us than what is around us now. If you do not feel excitement for Eternity, then maybe you should stop being so focused on your “Reality”.
Trusting, loving and following Christ will never leave you with wages less than your worth. Will your human boss die for you? Will your co-workers save you? Will your responsibilities deliver you? Tangible wages are great, but I guarantee they will never equal the wages we all are able to receive freely when working for, following and having faith in God! He loves us more than anything this world has to offer. Just try Him and see. You got this!
Sincerely,
Terryn
MODERN FAITHERELLA 