What is your occupation?
I’ve been a school counselor most of my life - helping students of all ages try to understand themselves and put a plan in place to have good mental health. And I’ve also taken a ton of courses to help people consider their occupational selves. Our identity often becomes intricately related to what we love to do, how we spend our time and what is important to us. Basically, our occupation serves a purpose - It is tied to our output and it often reflects our productiveness and predicts our financial health. Think about it. When you meet a person for the first time, what is one of the first questions that you usually ask them? In my experience, it happens within seconds. The person says “What is your name and what do you do?” So it did not surprise me, not one bit, that Pharaoh asks, “What is your occupation?” when he first met the brothers of Joseph, the sons of Jacob. He did not say, “Hello, how are you? How was your trip?” Instead he said, “What is your occupation?” (so I can know worth) It also does not surprise me that the noun "occupation" comes from the verb "to occupy" which means to dwell or abide. I mean, our occupation is where we spend most of our time. Remember - God worked six days, and only rested one. A lot of of time was spent creating that which He loved. God’s work reflected his thoughts which reflected His heart - and everything He made was judged as good. We, on the hand, are human, and the scripture says the human heart is the most deceitful of all. The output of us often leads to our fall. We have to be careful when we become really good at what we do, because it’s easy to become an idol of YOU. It does not matter if we are a skilled craftsman, a chief magician or a master shepherd ; a chief baker, chief butler or a wonderful mom - our identity can not become wrapped up in anything but God. Which is why Jesus said, “it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” Matthew 19:24 It is true. The rich man could be all about money, but it can also reflect that which we love. At any moment, we could be put to the test and all that we have could be taken from us - just like what happened to Job. And all of it happens under the sovereignty of God! We have to be careful about what God has entrusted to us. We must consider the questions Do we possess it? Does it possess us? Now the opposite of possession, and possessiveness - is to steward what we have for the sake of God. If we change our mindset, and stop hoarding “what is ours” then we are much more likely to water Kingdom fields of the Most High God. Jacob’s sons said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds, both we and also our fathers. We have come to dwell in the land, because your servants have no pasture for their flocks, for the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. Now therefore, please let your servants dwell in the land of Goshen.” Then Pharaoh spoke to Joseph, “The land of Egypt is before you. Have your father and brothers dwell in the best of the land; let them dwell in the land of Goshen. And if you know any competent men among them, then make them chief herdsmen over my livestock.” Genesis 47:3-7 Pharaoh took the opportunity to have master shepherds oversee his herds, he gave them the best of his fields. The scripture says, “Joseph brought in his father Jacob and set him before Pharaoh; and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. And Joseph situated his father and his brothers, and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. Genesis 47:11 Jacob blessed Pharaoh by using His skills to care for his own flock, and the flock of Egypt. I believe this is what God calls us each to do - to use our occupation to serve His Kingdom on earth as it is Heaven. Until the age to come, when God creates the New Jerusalem, the fields are full of both wheat and tares - It's not our job to separate them. In fact, we have been warned by Jesus himself. “Later, the wheat grew, and heads of grain grew on the plants. But at the same time the weeds also grew. Then the man’s servants came to him and said, ‘You planted good seed in your field. Where did the weeds come from?’ The man answered, ‘An enemy planted weeds.’ The servants asked, ‘Do you want us to go and pull up the weeds?’ He answered, ‘No, because when you pull up the weeds, you might also pull up the wheat. Let the weeds and the wheat grow together until the harvest time.” Matthew 19:26-30 What is your occupation? Perhaps it should be stewarding what God gave to us, and watering everything that grows in the Kingdom fields of God. Your worth is not in your occupation. Your worth is in your WHO you work for.
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