Labor Day

This Labor Day, let's remember the power of prayer over our work. Whether you have a job you love, are facing difficulties in the workplace, or are experiencing job loss, God has a plan and purpose for this season in your life.Prayer can significantly impact the work that we do and the way we see it. Yet in our day-to-day prayers, we often exclude the needs we encounter at work. For whatever reasons, our work and workplaces do not enter our minds as we pray. As a result, we may not experience the fullness of what God wants for us when we’re at work. When we start praying for our work, we recognize that God is active in all we do, not just our “personal” or “spiritual” lives. And this is transformative. Yet prayer doesn’t change God’s heart toward our work as much as it changes ours. And when we begin to see our work the way God sees it, we experience the power of prayer and of God’s grace.Use these prayers on Labor Day and all days to remember that God designed work to be fulfilling and to bring Him honor!(excerpt provided by NIV Faith and Work Bible)

Ahh, Labor Day. The last holiday weekend of the summer before we all jump headfirst into fall plans and preparations for Thanksgiving and Christmas. It’s the weekend where we might have our last dip in the pool with family, our last weekend of getting bargain sales, and last weekend before school activities start to take off.But what if for Labor Day this year, we reflect on the importance of resting from work, something that God wants us to do every week as He did at the beginning of time? Instead of seeing the day as just another summer holiday, we recognize and celebrate the need to rest from not just work, but anything that lessens our time with family, with ourselves, and, most importantly, with God.We are going to look more closely into how Labor Day began, as well as what God’s perspective is on rest. What are some ways we can incorporate rest into this Labor Day weekend that strengthens our relationship with the Lord and others? Maybe with this enhanced outlook about what Labor Day truly represents in our lives, we can make more of an effort to rest and reflect – not just on this holiday, but all throughout the year.Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Choreograph

Work: Some hate it. Some love it. Some avoid it. Some do it too much. This remains constant: God has a perspective on our work and we are to align our thoughts with His.

As we come to celebrate another Labor Day, let's step back for a moment and consider what Scripture has to say about the rhythm of work and rest.

Here are five ways pastors can encourage the laity in their labor.

Whether you are searching for a new job, working hard at your current position, fighting burnout in your work, or struggling with coworker conflicts, you can bring it before the Lord in prayer today. Like Psalm 90:17 says, the Lord our God has established the work of our hands. Jeremiah 29:11 reminds us that the Lord has good plans for us — plans that will prosper us and not harm us, plans that will give us hope and a future. So, let's make Colossians 3:23 our focus today: "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for man." Photo credit: ©Thinkstock/fizkes Here are 7 prayers (and 5 Bible verses!) for your work today:

Do you have any Labor Day plans? If you don’t, you might be in for treat this weekend.

May the gospel shape my work habits and attitude.

We work, accumulate, toil, labor… for what? It is easy for our work to feel meaningless. This short explores the tension and frustration that comes from defining our purpose from work. ‘Meaningless’ is a great short film for messages on Labor Day, rest, identity, and success. Video by Journey Box Media.

As Christians, the questions of calling and vocation become even more challenging when we factor God’s will into the equation. However, our career might not be as important to God as we think.

On Labor Day, we should honor those who serve the Lord 9 to 5. Think I'm talking only about pastors and preachers? Think again.

Before you settle back in the lawn chair this Labor Day, why not first go for a walk, a ride or make a life-changing difference? OSU Tour will make it easy for you at their Walk-a-Thon/Bike-a-Thon at NASCAR's Texas Motor Speedway.