Somethings are Difficult

"Just cause its hard does not mean it's not worth it."

   This is a phrase that I've spoken to myself, my sons and students that I've pastored.  I've said this statement because I believe it.  Many of my riches & most rewarding moments in life are cause I busted my butt and kept pushing for a well done job.  I believe in our culture over the last 40 years hard workers are becoming harder to find.  We've lost an entire generation (WWII generation) of people who modeled a full hard days work. Our country, economy and families are showing the result of this loss.  As a culture we've tried to simplify and create the easiest solution for as many parts of our life as possible. 
   Believe me I love YOUTUBE to find an easy fix or a "how to" and yes I will pay to get certain services done, that I'm capable of doing, purely to save time.  As much as I like cutting corners to get a job done faster but I also enjoy being efficient.  I like quality work but find I don't always have the quantity of time to create the quality I strive for.  And with that fact it is so easy to get suckered into a "good enough" mentality.  
   I see there are large faith implications of this as well.  When following Jesus calls us to go against the current of culture, raising a family, honoring a marriage and having integrity in a job the hard moments are when it's easier to roll over & quit.  I've seen this in my own life and it's not what I want to model for my sons, family or anyone else for that matter.

   The Greek myth of Sisyphus [you can read it here] often amuses me because of how often I feel life mirrors.  Simply he as cursed to roll a boulder up a hill for eternity only to see it roll down again once he completed his task. He was cursed because of his deceitfulness or "cutting corners".

   That's a curse that would frustrate me and make me want to give up and just quit!  But when I cut corners to try to save time or work less, i'm usually frustrated at the outcome.

   Regularly when I'm with students I see hard work being talked about as a curse and inconvenience whether it's school, sports or relationships.  The idea of breaking a sweat with any physical labor instead of staring at a digital screen is an easy decision for adults and students alike.  
I think hard work isn't just about physical labor but also intentional quality & quantity life moments.  Families won't work hard to own their calendar & create quality family time.  Parents allow kids & their sports schedules to be the CEO of the family and not Jesus.  
   It's very easy to view any time in life where hard work is needed as rolling a boulder up a hill.  We look at the moment & not the outcome.  When we see students work hard through school or a sport and get the scholarship or just play really well we realize hard work is worth it.  
   When we have quality family time because we work hard to keep family time consistent we know it's worth it.  When we actually stick to the diet and workout plan and we finally get a new wardrobe, we see it's worth it.
   I have no doubt hard work is worth it and when done with integrity I believe Jesus honors that.  It isn't always with a paycheck, scholarship or a championship but it is with refining our character.
   I have two sons I'm trying to model what a solid work ethic is about.  I'm trying to encourage & challenge students to be willing to have a solid work ethic in all areas of life because it is worth it.  I'm personally reminding my own standards, choices & soul that if I really believe in something then believe in working hard for it and don't cut corners.  I'm not cursed so when my boulder gets to the top of the hill, I can enjoy the view instead of being frustrated.

Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread,but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense. (Proverbs 12:11, ESV)