How Do I Talk to My Kids about Work?
The grade-school me carried a host of exciting career aspirations. I dreamed I’d be a feisty jockey atop a prize-winning steed (never mind that I grew to be nearly six feet). Or maybe a Broadway front-runner belting out rousing musical choruses in an eight-layer hoopskirt (too bad that sparkling soprano never surfaced). I might single-handedly solve the world’s orphan crisis as a social worker or glide to gold as an Olympic figure skater (if only I’d actually stepped foot on ice before my mid-twenties). In my fantasy future, anything and everything was on the table.
From playacting professions to applying for their first job, our kids will think and talk about work a lot under our roofs, just like I did growing up. Work is both an ambition and an affliction; a deep desire wired into our creative hearts from the youngest of ages, but also a difficult duty our sinful nature regularly fights against. Starting with those first “what do you want to be when you grow up?” imaginings, we moms have the immense privilege of helping form our children’s convictions and habits regarding work, impacting their entire lives and livelihoods. Here are five truths we can help imprint on their hearts as we seek to shape their views on work around the gospel:
Work reflects God. As people made in his image, our capacity and calling to work points back to God’s nature. He is a creator, a protector, a provider—a worker. And he instructed the very first image-bearers, Adam and Eve, to work as well, long before sin entered the world. They were to tend the garden, be fruitful, and multiply,[1] because God himself does those things. He’s a God of beauty, order, and purpose, and we get to point back to that by working with excellence in any job we do. Today that might look like picking up LEGOs (all the way!) and raking the neighbor’s leaves for a few dollars; in the future it might mean corralling children, performing open heart surgery, or managing investment portfolios. The diverse expressions of our human creativity and industry all show the world a little piece of who God is and who he’s made us to be.
Work is a privilege. If we have the physical and mental abilities to manage various responsibilities in life, those come solely as a gift of God’s grace. We can help our kids see that work—in any form—affords the opportunity to care for others, to share resources and possessions with those in need, to provide for ourselves and our loved ones, and to witness to unbelievers. So, as we load the silverware drawer or collect our clothes in the laundry hamper, we can thank God for fingers and hands that can sort and carry and strong minds that can bring order to the spaces around us. When we pack a lunch and drive off to a job, we can remember that it’s a blessing to be able to make money, gain knowledge, and develop practical life skills, that we might honor the Lord and invest in those around us.
Work is a responsibility, not an identity. It’s natural for even our youngest children to start centering their self-concept around what they want to be or do in the future—even when that chosen occupation changes on a daily basis! But these roles—whether an engineer, an astronaut, or a parent—won’t ultimately define them. We can teach our kids now that their value as image-bearers doesn’t fluctuate depending on whether they’re a high-ranking CEO or back-room burger flipper—it’s fixed on Christ and his perfect work on our behalf. So no matter what they do, they can work as a Christian. We can remind our kids of this when they are tempted both to put too much weight on earthly aspirations and acclaim or to despair over failure in their work. We find our true calling, purpose, and meaning in Jesus alone, regardless of what our name badge or paycheck one day may say or how successful our labors might seem.
Work is more than a job. As image bearers, we’re called to serve and exercise our gifts and energies in multiple arenas of life…our communities, our churches, our homes. Adult work isn’t limited to just a 9-to-5, and we don’t clock out on our call to be industrious and excellent in our tasks when we exit a workplace. We come home and fold our laundry, weed the garden, mow the lawn, and wash the dishes. We volunteer for a service role at church or sacrifice a Saturday to help our neighbor down the street. Similarly, our kids are called to reflect and honor God in their work across all of life. The enthusiasm with which they complete a chore for grandma or man a lemonade stand for pay should match their cheerful willingness to help a younger sibling with homework or stack firewood with Dad on a Saturday morning. We glorify God by working hard, in his joy and strength, both when the task seems fun or rewarding and when it’s difficult, boring, or simply necessary for life in a fallen world.
Work is for God’s glory, not ours. As Christians, we’re called to do everything to God’s glory, even the most basic functions of eating and drinking.[2] Our primary goal with work, then, is bigger than accumulating wealth, achieving a certain social standing, earning others’ likes, or stacking up the best house or car on the block. We were made not to glorify self through our labors but to call attention to God, the perfect worker. Offering our brains and bodies up to God for his service becomes a way we please and worship him.[3] When our kids struggle to approach an assignment with the right attitude or effort, we can challenge them by asking, “Are we worshiping God and bringing him glory right now? Are we focusing our hearts on honoring and obeying him or doing what we want most?”
We can’t shield our precious kids from the difficulties and disappointments of work this side of Eden. Because of the fall, work won’t always be fun or fulfilling. It may strain our bodies and stress our minds. We won’t always get to be whatever we want to be when we grow up. We will battle sins like laziness and workaholism. But, like all aspects of our lives, the gospel turns the story around and redeems what’s been broken. Because Christ has completed the work of our salvation, we have hope as we labor on in this life. When work gets hard for our kids, we can remind them that this is part of the consequence of sin in our world. It demonstrates our need for a Savior, but the great and glorious news is we have one! We can now work out of our rest in Christ and the promise that our efforts will be restored to perfect fruitfulness and joy once again in heaven. And as we serve and honor God with our hands and minds right now, he is faithful to use us to minister the gospel and build his kingdom…the most wonderful work of all!
[1] Genesis 1:28; Genesis 2:15
[2] 1 Corinthians 10:31
[3] Romans 12:1
