Work Is A Blessing From God

             When I was a law student, I worked as stenographer-typist in the prestigious Abellera Law Office of Davao City, Philippines. I had a much younger Assistant, Jovito R. Cagaanan. He later became a lawyer, then a Labor Arbiter and finally as one of the three National Labor Relations Commissioner (NLRC) for Mindanao, which is the equivalent of a Court of Appeals Justice in position, salary and privileges. His life career was quite impressive for he graduated cum laude in law at the Silliman University at Dumaguete City, in the Visayas, where he transferred during his law proper, and he became an author of a published Labor Law Compendium. He was compulsorily retired at age 65. Sadly, in less than a year from his retirement, he died.

Most people that I know who did nothing after their retirement become sickly and died in less than five years. On the other hand, those who never retired but only slowed down and keep on doing their usual work, live longer and healthier, like the brilliant former Supreme Court Justice Serafin Cuevas who, at age 83, is still actively practicing law and our erudite Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile who, at age 88, continues to be a brilliant lawyer and an astute politician. Thus, as of this day, both are still enjoying the exercise of their chosen field or career in life, and they appear healthy and very strong, and still handsome.

God gave labor to humanity as a blessing, to occupy our minds, to strengthen our bodies, and to develop our faculties.

Adam and Eve labored in the Garden of Eden, and they found in their mental and physical activities the highest pleasures of their earthly existence. Adam lived to be 900 years old. When they were driven from their beautiful homestead provided by God as the result of their disobedience to the command of God not to eat of the fruit “of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” in the garden of Eden (Gen. 2:16-17; 3:17 and 19), the ground was cursed by God so that in sorrow and in the sweat of their face, they ate their daily bread all the days of their life till they returned to the ground, that very labor was a relief to their sorrowing souls, a safeguard against temptation as they were kept busy tending the garden of Eden.

Honest labor is indispensable both to the happiness and prosperity of man. It sharpens the mind, makes the feeble strong, the timid brave and the poor rich, well provided and happy. Our varied trusts are proportioned to our various God-given abilities, and God expects corresponding returns for the talents He has bestowed to the obedient servants or believers. It is not the extraordinary greatness of the talents possessed by man that determines his reward, but the manner in which these God-given talents are used – the degree of faithfulness with which duties of life are performed, be they great or small.

For example in the case of Mr. Anthony Relatado, God has given him the extraordinary talent to work out in proper form and order our FGBMFI Davao City Chapter Saturday Bulletin. This bulletin is one of its kind in the whole world. This is a hard work which consumes much of his precious time, but his joy is unspeakable in words everytime our bulletin goes out for distribution to the excited members, to the guests and visitors as well as to other outlets, especially to the blog of yours truly which as of latest tally had 2884 viewers. How many reading souls will be blessed and know more of God and, consequently, accept Him as his Lord and Savior? The feeling, I might describe, is like that of an Engineer after building an imposing edifice or condominium admired by many, looking at it, his joy is unspeakable. Mr. Relatado’s reward of joy and satisfaction is being enjoyed by him now and more when he will reach heaven where his eternal reward is waiting.

Idleness is one of the greatest curses that can fall upon us, for vice and crime follow in its train. The Devil lies in ambush, ready to surprise and destroy those who are unguarded and doing nothing, whose leisure gives him opportunity to insinuate himself into their favor under some attractive disguise. The “adversary” is never more successful than when he comes to men and women in their idle times. So, man should never be idle. Truly, “the idle mind is the workshop of the devil”.

With his permission obtained, a classmate of mine in the College of Law, Atty. Christie Alquiza, who reached the pinnacle of success as business executive in banking and lending industry, evidenced not only by his position as President of the company but by a CRV Honda and a Rolex watch as his material rewards when he retired, in one of his visits to my law office, amazed me when he remarked in the Cebuano dialect, “Kapoy ang walay trabaho”. (In English, it is very tiresome not to have any work). With a mountain of envelopes of cases I was attending to on top of my desk, I retorted, “How can you be tired when you are not doing anything?” With a smile, he replied, “It is so tiresome to be always watching the TV and reading newspapers” then doing nothing afterwards. Of course, because he should be reading the Bible which is the most interesting of all books and which makes one wise unto salvation, and the mini-bible FGBMFI Saturday bulletin, after watching the TV and reading the newspapers. I have extended an invitation for him to attend our Saturday fellowship, but it seems he is just “too busy”. He told me he will take a “vacation” to U.S. to visit his doctor-son until December! By the time this article is published, he would already be in the “land of the brave and the free” and one “flowing with milk and honey”. Jokingly, I told him, “Please remember me when thou art in paradise” as my figurative expression of “don’t forget my ‘pasalubong’ (my gift of love)” when you return. Of course, being a wise lawyer, he understood my figure of speech, and he answered positively. I hope, like MacArthur’s promise of “I shall return”, he will fulfill his promise. But I know “in His time, He will make things beautiful” (Eccl. 3:11) for him. I should be very careful in my words because he asked me to give him a copy of our bulletin. Of course, if he will open his computer to my blog while in the U.S. he will know this before he receives his copy. I’m hoping that he will soon join our fellowship and later be in the most coveted place of abode for eternity.

The rich who often do nothing and enjoy pleasure and good food everyday, become sickly and die young. Many of these rich people who play golf as their past time and exercise, most often look down with contempt upon their poorer neighbors. They clothe themselves from head to foot fashionably, avoid all useful labor, and shun the society of the working classes. This style of life is at variance with the divine purpose of the creation of mankind and the world where they live. I am not referring to my classmate, for he does not play golf nor am I referring to anyone in FGBMFI who plays golf.

The Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, honored labor. Though he is the creator of heaven and earth and all that is in them and the Majesty of heaven, He chose His earthly home among the poor and lowly, and worked for His daily bread in the humble carpenter shop of Joseph, his adopted human father.

As a young lawyer, not having plenty of cases yet to attend to, when my office table specially made of Narra roots, the national tree of the Philippines, from its top to all its sides including its drawers with no nails used like the temple of Solomon, but all parts are screwed from inside, which today, as her lasting legacy from me, is being used by our daughter Susan who placed No. 9 in the 1991 bar examination, was being made by a furniture carpenter that I specially hired on a daily wage of P7.00 with free meals and snacks when the daily wage was yet P4.00, I tried to chop the outer layer of the Narra root measuring 3 ½ feet by 6 feet and about 3 ½ thick, until the red part of the root came out, but I felt very tired after only about ten minutes. I quit helping the carpenter. I then concentrated in my practice of law where I don’t feel tired though I have to attend trials and hearings of cases; read and write for many hours, even beyond the normal eight hours daily labor for six-days a week. Today, even if I work by researching, writing and re-writing several times the articles being published in the FGBMFI Saturday bulletin, I don’t feel tired. In fact, I enjoy my overtime work for, and ministry in, the kingdom of God.

The path of the Christian laborer may be hard and exhausting but it is enjoyable, rewarding and honored by the footprints of Jesus Christ, the indefatigable worker who travelled from village to village to do His work and ministry in the kingdom. These dedicated Christians are blessed with good health, prosperity and long and satisfying life. Prov. 10:4 says, “Lazy people are soon poor, hard workers get rich”. If we become rich materially and more so spiritually by working diligently, (or working hard) not through any unlawful means, Solomon said, “The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it” (Prov. 10:22 KJV).

All great men of the Bible, from Abraham to Moses, to all the kings, and all the prophets, and the Lord Jesus Christ, worked for the kingdom of God until their death. Therefore, we must work also until death will compulsorily retire us, for work is a blessing from God.

(FGBMFI Davao City Chapter Bulletin August 11, 2012)