Boston Motto: Work Harder, Suffer Longer
I’m not originally from Boston. I was born in the Midwest. The tell-tale sign is when I say suckers instead of lollipop or pop instead of soda. But now I live outside of Boston, and (even though I vow to always pronounce my R’s) I have adopted a lot of the jargon—bubblers instead of water fountains, and you guys instead of you or ya’ll. If someone asks me if I need anything I’ll respond, “I’m all set.”The other thing I’ve adopted is their pace of living.I didn’t think much of it until a friend of mine pointed out, “Boston – work harder, struggle longer, that’s our motto.” At first, I was taken back. No, we’re just fast-paced, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized she was right. Often, when asked how I’m doing, I’ll respond with the word “busy.”We pride ourselves on suffering through our busy lives. We wear our busyness like a badge of honor.Do I want this to be my mantra? I do believe in hard work and the Bible backs this up. Romans 12:11 (NLT) says, “Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically,” and Proverbs 13:4 (NLT) “Lazy people want much but get little, but those who work hard will prosper.” God wants us to try hard, and I believe it's good stewardship.Even though he’s from Philly, one of my favorite Will Smith quotes is:“I'm not afraid to die on a treadmill. I will not be out-worked, period. You might have more talent than me, you might be smarter than me, you might be sexier than me, you might be all of those things, you got it on me in nine categories. But if we get on the treadmill together, there are two things: You're getting off first, or I'm going to die. It's really that simple, right?You're not going to out-work me.”Will Smith’s drive is commendable, but are we to be slaves to our work ethic? Are we meant to work harder and suffer longer? Don’t we overstep boundaries when we believe in our own efforts as opposed to God’s blessing? Proverbs 23:4 says, “Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich.”Is this a contradiction? Work hard but don’t wear yourself out? How do we do this?I’m reminded of Matthew 11:28-30 (MSG), “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me, and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me, and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”It doesn’t say quit working. It says “work with me.” If we let him, God will come along side of us and make our work easy. So how do we shake the culture of work harder, suffer longer? One way would be to let God into our schedules. Make time for Him first. Take time to rest in his "unforced rhythm of grace." Another solution is to discover God’s purpose for our lives. When you’re working in your passion, it’s not work. It’s pure joy. Bill Hybels talks about this in his book Simplify. When God gives you a purpose and a passion, and you have the opportunity to work in it, “you’re blown away that someone is actually paying you for it.”How about you? Are you working hard, suffering long, or are you working within God’s passion, in His rhythm of grace? As an aside: My parents and most my relatives live in the South where they’re “fixing” to do something, and my favorite expression is to hear my cousin say, “Good night!” Except for it sounds more like “Goooud Nite!” I want to move there just so I can say it like that.