In a time before my day, a job was for life. When I first started in banking, we knew that not everyone got a job that long, however if you ever made it to a vice-president, then you would be set! Nothing or anybody would be able to touch your job. You were set for the duration, even if it meant working in some obscure corner with an office in what used to be a coat closet.
In today’s world, vice presidents do not get offices, everyone is vulnerable to the threat of redundancy or the disease of outsourcing, and there are no jobs that last forever. When you listen to the old proverb, “The one who stays on the job has food on the table; the witless chase whims and fancies” (Proverbs 12.11), it is easy to dismiss the words as not being applicable in an age where companies cannot be trusted. People, for the most part, are let go at will due to forces completely beyond their control or influence. People are, for many companies, just another raw material used in manufacturing and delivering a service. If things are not profitable or if the future is uncertain, then the solution is to cut costs. The one cost business can control is people, so they quickly become expendable.
I do not believe the old proverb had anything to do with things out of one’s control. If you look at the heart of the words and reflect on your life, there is much that applies. Charles, a friend who ran a car service, understood this. He knew that life was more than chasing monies, power, and status. He provided food for his family, cared for the people in his responsibility, and enjoyed the grace found in each moment. I knew when I opened the door of his car that I was stepping into a world of compassion and concern.
You and I have a choice. Will we chase our own view of what will make us successful or trust God? Today is real, the outcome eternal.
