work to do

As the hyper-responsible oldest girl in my family, eager to please parents and teachers, growing up as a good American Christian, I said yes to responsibilities. Lead a Bible study- yes. Prayer group at noon- yes. Leadership team- yes. In our society, responses to requests to take on tasks are often gendered. Women tend to say yes too often, while men comfortably say no. Learning our limits and our capacity, when to step up and work or when to let someone else do the job, is an ongoing process. 

I appreciate that in the short story Jesus tells in today’s gospel, the father asks two sons to do the work. Whereas when Jesus was hosted by Mary and Martha, he affirmed a woman’s choice to sit and learn rather than work to serve the men already reclining. It took time for me to learn how to say no, and to also embrace the option to change my mind. 

“What do you think? A man had two sons. Now he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’

“‘No, I don’t want to,’ he replied. But later he changed his mind and went.
Matthew 21:28-29 (CEB)

Years ago when Ron asked for people to lead new small groups, I thought, “Been there, done that- no, thank you.” But when an idea for Jewish-holiday-focused gatherings came to me, my answer changed. In early 2015 when Jason asked me to consider giving a teaching at New Covenant, I declined because I had nothing to say. When I finally consented to pray about it, God surprised me with a topic and a willingness to speak. Six months later, Kye asked me to apply for the co-pastor position; I was honored and amused, “I appreciate the compliment, but I love my job and NCF can’t afford me.” I couldn’t imagine that the new principal would make my work life so unpleasant and that God would so grow my passion for NCF that I would be happy to change my tenure as a school counselor to become a pastor. 

Listening to the story of the two sons this morning, I thought of all the work to be done in the vineyard. I wondered if the father was reluctant to ask his sons to go out and work again. Maybe he knew that neither of them wanted to be in the field that day, but he didn’t have enough employees to cover what needed to be done. What would sway their decision to say yes or no? Their relationship to him? Their sense of responsibility for the family business? 

“The father said the same thing to the other son, who replied, ‘Yes, sir.’ But he didn’t go.

“Which one of these two did his father’s will?”

They said, “The first one.”
Matthew 21:30-31 (CEB)

Sometimes we need to be open to inspiration that inclines us to embrace the work or respond to the request. Other times, like the sister who sat and learned despite the pressure to take on tasks, we need to be still. Always, we need to be open to the possibility of change, listening for the will of our divine parent. May we each be strengthened today in our learning and our work.  –Renée

2 Comments On “work to do”

  1. Thank you, Renee – well said! (I trust it’s okay if I smile some as I read…)

    Reply

  2. Amen! Good reminders. Thank you!

    Reply

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