Finding Fulfillment in WorkSample

We are made to work.

Do you ever count it a victory just to make it to work on a harried Monday morning? Getting out of bed, fighting traffic, and arriving to work can be a feat, and then once there, it can all seem meaningless. Does it even matter? We often struggle to find meaning and fulfillment in our work. However, God intended work for our good and His glory. The question is, how can we find fulfillment in work that we think doesn’t matter to God? It all starts with a biblical perspective.

You are Created to Work

Throughout Genesis 1 we witness God’s infinite power as He created the world out of nothing. In Genesis 1:26-27, God reveals the creative nature of humanity that is modeled after Him. Being made in His image means we embody His creative characteristics, even though imperfectly. We can create something out of something. God created His people to work, to create, and to prosper. Understanding the context for our creation intimately informs the view of our work.

Molded after a God who exists in three persons – Father, Son, Holy Spirit – man is also a relational being meant to live in community. Be it with family, friends, at church, or at work, we live in relationships in every area of life. We cannot flourish in isolation. God designed us to serve each other with our unique gifts through work so that we can experience more success, more flourishing, and more happiness.

Your Job Description

We often consider our job as a means to a paycheck – a way to fund our leisure activities and pay the bills. However, God intended more than mere survival for His people. He created mankind to grow and cultivate the earth so that it may prosper and glorify Him. He desires flourishing for all of creation. We learn this in Genesis 2: “The Lord God took man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and keep it.” Work is not a curse but a gift from God before the Fall. God created us to be stewards of His creation through our work. There is great dignity in knowing that we are made specifically with a purpose in creation.

In Genesis 1:28, God gives Adam and Eve their job description, the cultural mandate. He commands them to be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth with his images, and subdue it. This mandate wasn’t just meant for Adam and Eve; it was meant for all humanity. The cultural mandate gives us purpose in our vocations. It instills significance in our work. Understanding our biblical job description is the first step to finding fulfillment in our work.

Additional Elements

Learn more about God’s incredible plan set forth in creation and what being made in God’s image means for your life in this digital booklet: God’s Purpose in Creation.