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From the Director of Missions

"...your labour is not in vain in the Lord " 1 Corinthians 15:58

As I write this article we are just a few days away from Labor Day.  Labor Day is now considered by most Americans to be the symbolic end of summer.  With one last “hurrah” gone are all those hot summer afternoon dips in the local swimming hole, gone are those wonderful picnic excursions, gone are those lazy days of no school and no study, gone are all the vestiges of summer except sweet memories.

But Labor Day was never intended to  mark the end of  things.  It was actually conceived as a celebration.  It was intended to recognize and appreciate good workers in America and Canada.  It was designed to celebrate working people. 

Even the appointed time of celebration (the first Monday in September) was significantly and deliberately chosen.  Had it ever dawned on you that Labor Day is half way between Independence Day and Thanksgiving?

With that thought in mind let me throw a radical thought your way.  So many of our religious celebrations have been secularized, have you ever thought of taking a secular holiday and Christianizing it.  Instead of letting Labor Day simply mark the end of summer for you, or even remind you to recognize and appreciate the labor forces in America, why not let it become a labor in the Lord celebration day?

 At least half way between our being set free in Christ and the Thanksgiving of seeing him face-to-face in glory we need to take time to celebrate laboring for the Lord!  Not only do we need to do so to gain our own second wind, we need to do so to encourage others to stay  the course!

President Grover Cleveland initiated the first national recognition of Labor Day in 1894.  He did so as an act of reconciliation and commitment.  Thirty-four citizens died earlier that year, when (during the Pullman Strike in Chicago) President Cleveland had called in U. S. marshals and the military.  So, a mere six days after the strike ended, Congress unanimously signed a law making Labor Day a national holiday.  That in itself had to be a miracle!

With literally multiplied thousands of lives being lost to hell every day, as this new church year and this Labor Day rolls around will you make a personal declaration and commitment to give both some spiritual depth and celebration.?  Will you  (as 1 Corinthians 15:58 commands) become more steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the Lord’s work?

Let me share with you a little bit of what that entails.  I am sure you have heard of the necessity of taking a stand.  In much that line of thinking this is more like a sit down strike.  The Greek meaning behind the word, hedraios,(to be stedfast) actually means to be so firmly seated, to be so solidly grounded that you are next to impossible to move. 

 To be unmovable, ametakinetos, has to do with a well-established mindset.  We might even call it stubborn mindedness in our day.  In your commitment to God you can’t be convinced to change sides.

And as for the work of the Lord, you don’t just make occasional, half-hearted attempts at serving Him.  Instead you always superabundantly abound in the work of the Lord.  So that as Jesus himself said, “. . .they may see your good works and may glorify your Father.”  Mt 5:16

Looking forward to a great year ahead as we labor with & for the LORD!

Brother Doug