For the last 25 years since entering into the full time ministry as a missionary I have thought about what it means to work. I have been helped by reading “Under the Unpredictable Plant” “Your Money or Your Life” and most recently “Outliers”. Although these books have helped; knowing exactly what “work” is has been elusive for me.
For me, knowing exactly what work is has been elusive because for a couple of reasons. First, my motivation for “working” has not been money. Although I have been paid and have needed the money to provide for things I need and want. Secondly, I have, for the most, part deeply enjoyed my work. These two areas alone make what I do feel like anything but work. But as an added bonus I get to work at home with my family. In the past it has been my wife and two children. Now it is Debbie and Sam.
I am in the office every day by 8 a.m. or earlier. I do a variety of computer related things: accounting, e-mail, correspondence. I find a good deal of enjoyment in this most of the time. It is “fun” to watch the money balance and to send e-mails off and receive them in return.
I spend time during the day and in the evenings in good conversations with people I really enjoy. I get to think and teach about the most important subjects. Most of the time I feel like I am having a real positive impact on the people that God brings into my life.
The job isn’t perfect. Sometimes I miss not having a class room where I see the same students several times a week. Sometimes it is lonely as I spend a good deal of time working alone. Often I am saying good bye to people who I have grown to love. This really sucks. And currently I have to deal with deployments.
One of the difficult parts of my work is how different it is from most everyone I know. It is different because I enjoy it. It is different because of the autonomy that I have. It is different because for the most part I am able to balance work, sleep and study so I often feel centered. Therefore it is difficult because it is easy to feel guilty.
However, I believe that the work I am doing has been given to me by God and rather than feeling guilty I am choosing to feel grateful.