Do You Worship The Work?

We are God’s fellow workers . . . —1 Corinthians 3:9

Beware of any work for God that causes or allows you to avoid concentrating on Him. A great number of Christian workers worship their work. The only concern of Christian workers should be their concentration on God. This will mean that all the other boundaries of life, whether they are mental, moral, or spiritual limits, are completely free with the freedom God gives His child; that is, a worshiping child, not a wayward one. A worker who lacks this serious controlling emphasis of concentration on God is apt to become overly burdened by his work. He is a slave to his own limits, having no freedom of his body, mind, or spirit. Consequently, he becomes burned out and defeated. There is no freedom and no delight in life at all. His nerves, mind, and heart are so overwhelmed that God’s blessing cannot rest on him.

But the opposite case is equally true–once our concentration is on God, all the limits of our life are free and under the control and mastery of God alone. There is no longer any responsibility on you for the work. The only responsibility you have is to stay in living constant touch with God, and to see that you allow nothing to hinder your cooperation with Him. The freedom that comes after sanctification is the freedom of a child, and the things that used to hold your life down are gone. But be careful to remember that you have been freed for only one thing–to be absolutely devoted to your co-Worker.

We have no right to decide where we should be placed, or to have preconceived ideas as to what God is preparing us to do. God engineers everything; and wherever He places us, our one supreme goal should be to pour out our lives in wholehearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might . . .” (Ecclesiastes 9:10).

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崇拜工作

與神同工。 （林前三9）

當心別讓任何為神的工作，叫你離開對神的專注。許多主的工人敬拜自己的工作。工人唯一應該關注的，是集中於神身上，其他生活的一切，如精神、道德、靈性等等，都像赤子般的自由－－一個敬拜神的孩子，不是背逆的兒女。神的工人若沒有這種認真對神專注的心，就很容易被工作打垮，以致身體、心思、精神，沒有絲毫的自由；結果身體疲憊耗盡，心力交瘁，失去自由，生活也沒有樂趣。精神、心思、心靈被重壓到一個地步，以致神的祝福也無法臨到。另一方面，當你真的專注在神身上，生活的各方面都自由了，因只有神在掌管。工作的責任不在你身上；你唯一的責任是保持與神有活潑不斷的關係，不讓任何事物阻礙你與他合作。成聖後的自由，是兒女的自由，一切叫生命受制的東西都沒有了。但要記住，你的自由是單單為了一件事－－絕對忠於你的同工。

我們沒有權去命令神該放我們在那裡，或自作主張地要神在那方面操練我們。神安排一切；不論他放我們在那裡，我們最大的目的是要在那工作上面盡我們的忠誠。 [凡你手所當作的事，要盡力去作。 ]

祈禱◆主啊，我何其像那沒有為午夜到訪的友人預備什麼的人！許多人正急待拯救，將責任完全承擔起來吧！願你恩慈的同在覆遍這地。