Labor For the Lord 

   “Therefore my beloved brothers, be firm, be steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”  (1 Cor 15: 58) 

   All that we do should be offered to the Lord.  Whether relaxing or working, in joy and in sorrow, all should be done giving praise and glory to the Father.  In this way all we do becomes a labor for the Lord, a never-ending prayer to God.

   We can do nothing without the Lord.  The sooner we realize this and incorporate it into our our daily life, the closer we will come to the God who loves us in so many ways.  Many times we give glory to God for the benefits He gives but fail to give Him glory even for the difficulties He sometimes allows in our lives.  But with God both the good times as well as the trials of life are a gift intended to bring us always nearer to Him; to help us know that we are nothing without Him and therefore, owe Him thanks and praise in all situations.

   When I read the letters of St. Paul, I see the example of how I am to live my life.  Granted, I can never live as Paul did, but when I try to emulate his devotion to God and to all God’s children it helps me understand that I am also His child and, as such, must love all my brothers and sisters.

   I am not worthy of God’s love and yet He loves me with an eternal love.  How can I, then, pick and choose which of God’s children are worthy of my love?  Jesus said, “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5: 32).  Therefore I must welcome the sinner with love, offering my prayers and even my sufferings for the conversion of all, that all may know the glory of the Lord.

   We are meant to labor in this life as a result of the fall of mankind in the Garden of Eden.  By offering our labor to God for our good and the good of all, we make our labor a prayer and therefore, pleasing to God.