E for Enough
Continuing with the most popular letter in the English language, here is an encapsulated rendition of Philippians chapters 3 & 4:
Look out-
Evil hides in religion:
Eighth day, a tribe, and some zeal.
Everything’s really through faith,
Eyes fixed ahead on our call.
All our
Enemies walk past the cross,
Ending in shame, filled with self.
Earth shapes their minds, but not ours,
Enabled by Christ to change.
Therefore,
Entreating sister workers,
Euodia, Syntyche,
Enter again side by side;
Everyone’s watching your lives.
And now
Each anxious thought in your hearts
Entrust as requests to God.
Everything worthy of praise,
Earnestly dwell on these things.
Know that
Extremes in life will abound-
Empty or full, I’m content.
Except for you, I’ve had Christ.
Enough in his strength, I’m supplied.
Why condense a book into phrases that start with E? Does it do any good or is it just amusing? Here’s what you might find in an exercise like this:
You concentrate and meditate on a passage, which puts it deeper into your heart.
You look for meaning in paragraphs, not just single verses.
You’ll never forget that Epaphroditus and Euodia are in the book with lots of E’s.
Your workday matters
In the beginning, God, the Master Designer, created a physical world that He deemed good. He included humanity in His good creation, but he distinguished us above the rest of the created order by making us in His image. Our responsibility was to steward the abundant potential He’d woven into the earth for the sake of the world’s flourishing and to the glory of the Creator.
But mankind rejected this plan, wanting to define good ourselves, instead of living by how God had defined it. Now, instead of stewarding all that God made, humanity neglects, destroys, or worships God’s creation to the destruction of our own souls. Everything is out of alignment, physically and spiritually.
The promise we cling to for our future is that, through Christ, God will one day completely restore his creation that’s been misaligned by sin. He will turn chaos into order; He will make the broken whole; He will make what’s wasted, useful, what’s ruined, beautiful. Everything lost under the curse is finally reversed entirely.
Until that day, we participate in God’s restoration process every time we put our hands to work, bringing order, wholeness, or beauty to the world through our jobs. While we're on this earth, we’ve been entrusted to research, discover, and utilize the built-in laws and principles that uphold our world and lead to its beneficial use. We’re entrusted to apply our abilities, giftings, strengths, insights, and responsibilities for the good of those around us and in reflection of our Master until He returns. We take part in:
God’s orderliness if we’re accountants or secretaries
God’s creativity if we’re designers or chefs
God’s justice if we’re in law and government
God’s truth if we’re teachers or researchers
God’s care if we’re in the medical field or parenting a three year old
The list goes on. As we steward our Master’s entrustments, we also anticipate the completion of His work when His kingdom fully comes. Somehow, the way we steward our responsibilities on this earth, affects our future responsibilities in his kingdom. There is an inheritance awaiting us, where the little we’ve been faithful with, becomes much for our role in God’s kingdom. The little bits of joy we’ve experienced in our role on earth become full joy in the Master’s presence.
May you experience a glimmer of that joy in your workday, because it matters to Him.
For more, see Genesis 1-3; Matthew 25:14-29; Romans 1:20-23, 8:18-28; Colossians 3:23-24