Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. (Jn. 14:1)
Joel, Chapter 2, Verse 21-22
21 Do not fear,
O land! Delight and rejoice, for the LORD has done great things 22 Do not fear, you animals in the wild, for the
wilderness pastures sprout green grass. The trees bear fruit; the fig tree and
the vine produce their harvest.
Notice
the prophet here acknowledges that God in his power has complete control over
nature. They do not fear. They
are perfectly happy because nature does not have freewill and cooperates with
God living their existence in accordance with their created
function.
Yet
we because we were created in the image and likeness of God we have a choice.
To do good or to do evil. Daily we must decide if we are for
ourselves and pursue the things of the world or are we going to follow Christ
by picking up our cross daily.
“You
shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be happy, and it
shall be well with you” (Ps 128:2). It is clear from the very first pages of
the Bible that work is an essential part of human dignity; there we read that
“the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and
keep it” This is why any
charity must include some type of work to preserve the dignity of the person
such as the practice of gleaming or the use of loans in the Old Testament for
food. Labor also makes
possible the development of society and provides for the sustenance, stability
and fruitfulness of one’s family. The Book of Proverbs also presents the labor
of mothers within the family; their daily work is described in detail as
winning the praise of their husbands and children (cf. 31:10-31). Paul was so
convinced of the necessity of work that he laid down a strict rule for his
communities: “If anyone will not work, let him not eat” (2 Th 3:10; cf. 1 Th 4:11).
This having been said, we can appreciate the suffering created by unemployment
and the lack of steady work, as reflected in the Book of Ruth, Jesus’ own
parable of the laborers forced to stand idly in the town square (Mt 20:1-16),
and his personal experience of meeting people suffering from poverty and
hunger. Sadly, these realities are present in many countries today, where the
lack of employment opportunities takes its toll on the serenity of family life.
Yet, those that employ are often trapped by their own greed and power and
instead of using the joy in their work; they are selfish and instead of founding
living sustainability with their work their actions often lead to the desertification
of the earth (cf. Gen 3:17-19) By our work we are to build up a garden and make,
no create with God, a better world, not rape it and by love make it better.
A good name is better than riches.
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