Labor Day – Not Just Another Day Off Work

Labor Day is next Monday, and many of us know what that means: College football season gets into full swing this weekend. Hooray! But as millions stream through the gates of collegiate stadiums across the country, and many more millions tune in to watch their favorite teams on TV, we’d do well not to forget the significance of the upcoming holiday itself. 

The history of Labor Day traces back to New York City on Sept. 5, 1882, where the Central Labor Union organized a parade. But it wasn’t until June 28, 1894, in response to strikes over unfair labor practices and public pressure during the Industrial Revolution, that President Grover Cleveland signed legislation to establish it as a national holiday. Its purpose was to celebrate historical achievements such as eight-hour workdays, free weekends, and safer working conditions.

 

Today, many people enjoy it primarily for extending the weekend. Some communities sponsor parades, while many folks plan backyard barbecues and picnics, and take advantage of retail sales events. 

 

Always observed on the first Monday of September, Labor Day deserves to be regarded as more than just another day away from labor. It should be a time for recognizing the intrinsic value of work, along with economic achievements that have helped to build our nation and lift the living standards of countless millions of workers and their families.

 

Sadly, it seems work has been devalued, especially in recent years. The COVID pandemic contributed to this, with millions of American workers either losing their jobs, being sent home to work remotely, or having their work hours drastically reduced as a consequence of shutdowns. But studies indicate the lowered prominence of work in society has persisted post-pandemic.

 

For instance, approximately seven million prime-age men (ages 25-54) reportedly are neither working nor seeking employment. This means adult male labor force participation has declined to below 67 percent, compared to 77 percent in the 1970s and the all-time high of nearly 87 percent in 1948. Numerous factors have contributed to this, but what’s most troubling is that millions of people – men and women – aren’t working, not because they can’t find work but rather because they choose not to work.

 

Some might wonder, ‘What’s the big deal?’ It’s a big deal for several reasons. Most important, work was established by God. The opening chapter of Genesis in the Old Testament, after describing how the Lord pursued His work of Creation, gives us what some theologians refer to as the “cultural mandate”:

“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness….’ God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature…. I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food…’” (Genesis 1:26-29).

 

God is a worker, and part of being made in His image is that men and women also are to be workers, tending to what He has created. Because of the original sin of Adam and Eve – “the Fall” – the Lord prescribed that work would become difficult. “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you…. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food…” (Genesis 3:17-19).

 

Despite this, work through the centuries has retained a sense of purpose, even nobility. King Solomon observed, “Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him – for this is his lot” (Ecclesiastes 5:18).

 

Work also is a way of honoring God by wholeheartedly using the abilities and talents He has entrusted to us: “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him…. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Colossians 3:17,23-24).

 

A third important value of work is being able to employ our skills, gifts and experience to serve others. We take many forms of work for granted, but have you ever considered what it would be like if there were no one to perform them? 

 

We expect to walk into a clean restroom, but there must be someone to keep it clean. At a restaurant we rely on people to take our orders, serve our food, and clean off the tables when we leave so they’re ready for someone else. To fly anywhere safely requires hundreds of people, starting with the plane’s designers and manufacturers, maintenance crew to put fuel in and make necessary repairs, ticket agents, pilots and co-pilots, flight attendants, cabin cleaners, food preparers, air traffic controllers, and many others.

 

At times we might regard work as “a necessary evil,” but whatever kind of work we do, in one way or another we’re performing an important function for other people. As the apostle Peter wrote, “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms” (1 Peter 4:10).

 

Our foremost example is Jesus Christ. Before embarking on His earthly ministry, He was a craftsman. Ultimately, His work was to teach, heal the sick and disabled, feed the hungry, bring a handful of people back to life, and then die on the cross as the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Jesus always had a clear understanding of why He had come: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

 

So, as you’re enjoying the Labor Day holiday, and perhaps assessing the first full weekend of college football, please don’t forget: God ordained work, He has equipped you with capabilities to do your work, and many people benefit from what you do. Happy Labor Day!

Time for Celebrating a Labor of Love

Of all our American holidays, Labor Day is probably the most confusing. In the minds of some, it marks the unofficial end of summer. Others might regard the holiday weekend as the annual launch of football season. For many schoolchildren, Labor Day signifies the end of summer vacation and time to return to the classroom. While for many folks, it’s just an opportunity to hit the pause button before the most hectic time of the year begins.

 

The holiday was birthed in the late 19^th century, when labor activists were advocating an annual celebration of the many contributions workers had made to the strength, prosperity and overall health of the nation. It came at the peak of the Industrial Revolution, when many workers were putting in 12-hour days, seven days a week to eke out a minimal livelihood. Worker strikes, protests and riots led up to Congressional action declaring a federal holiday, signed into law on June 28, 1894. Tangible changes in working hours, compensation and benefits were to follow.

 

Imagine the creativity and effort required
to construct this spiral staircase.

So, while many of us are spending the day at cookouts, various outings or just relaxing, enjoying a day off work, it’s fitting that we pause for a brief homage to American workers, men and women who not only have managed to earn a livelihood for themselves and their families, but also have contributed to the well-being of our society in countless ways.

 

It can also serve as a reminder that from the beginning, work was God’s idea. Even before the sins of Adam and Eve broke up their idyllic existence in Eden, the Lord had ordained work as a good use of our time and talents, as well as a way of giving glory to Him as our Creator.

 

We find this clearly expressed in the first chapter of Genesis. After stating that God created male and female in His image, it says, “God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it…. I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food” (Genesis 1:28-29).

 

Sadly, after the original couple defied the Lord by eating fruit from the one tree God had forbidden them to eat from, work became difficult: “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life…. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food…” (Genesis 1:17-19). Perhaps, before their “fall,” when Eve asked Adam to fetch her a particular type of food he would respond, “No sweat.” No longer.

 

This in no way negates the truth that God, the ultimate worker, desires for us to also work and honor Him in the process. In fact, the Scriptures say it’s one means for receiving recognition and advancing through society: “Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will serve before kings; he will not serve before obscure men” (Proverbs 22:29). 

 

In Ecclesiastes, generally attributed to King Solomon, we find a sometimes-negative perspective on work. For instance, he writes, “So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind” (Ecclesiastes 2:17). And yet, later in the chapter he writes, “A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God” (Ecclesiastes 2:24).

 

A couple chapters later, Solomon affirms the benefits of collaborating with others: “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work. If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!” (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10).

 

Other verses from Proverbs affirm the value of hard work, such as, “Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth” (Proverbs 10:4) and, “All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty” (Poverty 14:23).

 

Then the New Testament book of Colossians revisits the idea that work is not only productive and profitable, but also a way for serving and glorifying our Creator God: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Colossians 3:23-24).

As many of us enjoy another day off from our jobs, vocations and professions, it would be good also to remember that work is a good and noble thing, birthed in the infinite and wonderful mind of God. It should be a time of celebration – and worship!