15 April, Monday — Work For the Purpose of Eternity

Monday of the 3^rd Week of Eastertide

Acts 6:8-15
John 6:22-29

Do not work for food that cannot last, but work for food that endures to eternal life.

Work is holy. But work can also sometimes feel like an awful grind. It is not merely what we do in our visible public life that demonstrates our mettle, motivations and capability. It is what is inside of us that directs the focus of the work of our hands, towards holy or unholy outcomes.

How do today’s First Reading of Acts 6:8-15 relate to the Gospels in John 6:22-29? Both reveal to us the nature of work that God intents for us, and the kind of internal disposition that we must possess in order to do work that is firstly truly pleasing to Him, and work that has real impact and endures beyond the physical realm (or the daily drudgery).

The first reading talks about the power indwelling in disciple Stephen who is a channel and instrument of the Holy Spirit, and how the work of such a person is able to withstand jealousy, blasphemy, manipulation and scapegoating. It tells us plainly that, if you are doing God’s work, there will be resistance and obstacles. One should expect to experience trials on the process, naysayers, and even calumny. Do not give up, do not cower. Seek courage from the Holy Spirit to persist!

Secondly, in the Gospel passage, the crowd searched for Jesus and asked Him: “What must we do if we are to do the works that God wants?” Jesus responds that the utmost valuable work, the very thing our hungry hearts and thirsting souls seek, is to find and labour in the work that endures to eternal life, to work for “the kind of food the Son of Man is offering you, for on him, the Father, God himself, has set his seal.” He said: “This is working for God: you must believe in the one he has sent.” Now that is truly hard and eternal work — to believe and remain believing in Christ as our Lord and Saviour, and thus, to direct all our worldly striving (physical toil and intellectual labour) and spiritual efforts (to evangelise, to intercede, to worship and minister to others) towards God’s ends.

As a stay at home mother to my primary school-going child, I have not been in the ‘marketplace’ for some years. As such, my appreciation of what is meaningful work has evolved. To this end, I have come to experience that even the most menial and Sisyphean work of a housewife is holy and sanctifying. It has pared down my expectations of doing visible and LinkedIn-worthy achievements.

Instead, my concerns revolve, quite mundanely around… Have I fed another hungry stomach, and heart? Have I nursed a thirsting soul? Have I carved a safe space for another who needed to know the face of God? Have I responded to and nurtured my own thirst and hunger with everlasting Bread? At the very basic level, have I loved and been loving? Have I tried to be Christ to my family? No walk in the park, I must admit.

In this respect, you and I can have access to this mystical sanctification of work. In fact, I realise now that work that is truly Holy, is at once, sacramental in the present moment, and enduring in the realm of eternity.

Perhaps, we could more often reflect on these questions: Have I allowed my work to perform its sacramental purpose of revealing the Holy Spirit to someone? Could I infuse my workplace and the work I do with love, integrity, and responsibility. I could be a teacher, an administrative manager, a social worker, an artist, a dancer, a delivery man, a paper-pusher, a salary-man, a service staff, a nurse, doctor or cleaner. I could be performing my duties in any domain. But in any moment, have I been like the disciple Stephen, filled with the power and grace of the Holy Spirit, bringing the message of Christ to someone who crosses my path?

(Today’s OXYGEN by Debbie Loo)

Prayer: May you and I be fed with the love and everlasting bread that does not perish. May we bring Christ, the Living Bread, in creative and diverse ways to as many people and occasions possible.

Thanksgiving: Jesus, thank you for revealing to the crowd, which is everyone and anyone who seeks the Eternal Truth, of where and how we can find and receive this Eternal Food which will never perish. You are the source of our Eternal Life. Help us to direct all our mind, body and spirit to working for Your Kingdom.