I’ve always looked at Memorial Day and Labor Day as the bookends of summer. Both are now three day weekend holidays that also commemorate the end of one school year and the beginning of the next—although today’s schools don’t stick as closely to that schedule anymore.

Now that we live in Idaho, the leaves changing colors and the brisk mornings let us know that fall season is on its way.

You probably have memories, or maybe you’re planning this year, Labor Day picnics, family reunions, and barbeques commemorating the official end of summer; but beyond that, few stop to think about why we even have the day off. What is Labor Day anyway?

History of Labor Day

In 1894, Grover Cleveland made Labor Day a federal holiday after a failed attempt to break up a railroad strike. Observed on the first Monday in September, Labor Day pays tribute to the contributions and achievements of American workers.

Traditionally, all stores closed on Labor Day so that most workers could celebrate the holiday. Today, most stores are having Labor Day sales and their workforce is hard at work on a day that was supposed to be about resting from work. Many people work on Labor Day without realizing, Hey, I’m a worker who has contributed to my company and I should have a day of rest! Stay closed today.

Work and Rest

A Crosswalk.com article, Labor Day: Your Need for Both Work and Rest by Nick Batzig, caught my attention. It starts out . . .

“As we come to celebrate another Labor Day, it may be beneficial for us to step back for a moment and consider what Scripture has to say about the rhythm of work and rest—i.e. the cyclical configuration by which all the events of our lives occur.”

The article discusses God’s original plan for work and how that all changed when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit and why God wants us to have times of rest and refreshment. Batzig listed several changes over the years that have resulted in work being motivated by prestige, self-esteem, peer pressure, fear, anxiety, and lack of purpose outside of work, rather than work simply being a means to provide for our family. The following point resonated with what I see happening in families today:

“Whereas traditional societies said that you got your meaning in life through your family, and through basically fulfilling a fairly prescribed social role—either as a mother or father, or a brother or sister, or husband or wife, or a son or a daughter…You just needed to find a way to make a living because family was what everything was about. But we’re the first culture in history that says, ‘You define yourself by defining what you want to be and by attaining it—and then you have significance.’ There’s never been more psychological and social and emotional pressure on work to be either fulfilling or at least lucrative. There’s never been a culture like that.”

How Can We Find Times to Rest?

I’ll admit that I’m a recovering workaholic. The only way I’m able to balance work and rest is to prioritize what’s most important to me—serving God and my family. My ministry is About His Work Ministries, so I’m fortunate to be able to serve God through my work of writing and speaking.

I also make sure to schedule times of rest with my hubby, and we often plan those times into speaking event travels and trips to see our grandkids. We also serve in ministry together by leading a Couples Bible study. Dave assists me in my ministry and at speaking events he runs the book table.

When I’m spending time with my family—my husband, children, and grandchildren—I set aside “work” and focus on family.

That doesn’t leave much time in my schedule for “extra” activities, and so I’ve had to learn to say no to some good things. Before I say “yes, and find myself with no time to rest and refresh, I’m trying to remember to do two things:

1. Pray and ask God if it’s something He wants me to do.

2. Assess if I have the time and energy to add this activity to my calendar.

If I sense God telling me to go for it, I know I must remove something from my calendar or I’ll become unbalanced trying to get all the work done and rest will suffer.

What do you do to find times of rest and refreshment in a world that values work over rest?

“Come to Me, all of you who work and have heavy loads. I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28 (NLV)

I wrote a Bible study about finding ways to live a balanced life based on Paul’s ministry and his work and ministry helpers, Priscilla and Aquila.

Face to Face with Priscilla and Aquila: Balancing Life and Ministry

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