Returning to Work in Light of Christmas

Scripture — Luke 2:17-20

When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Devotion

Many of us get time off at Christmas. We get at least a day or two in which we don’t have to work. Some of us stretch our holiday vacations to a week or even more, visiting relatives, heading for the ski slopes, or enjoying some quiet days at home.

Then we go back to work. Christmas is over, or so it feels, in spite of the fact that the liturgical celebration of the birth of Christ lasts for twelve days, culminating on January 5th. Yet, it’s hard to feel especially Christmassy when we’re staring at an overflowing email inbox and a painfully long to-do list. Merry Christmas? Hardly. More like, “Bah! Humbug!”

But is there a way to take Christmas back to work with us? I’m not thinking about playing Christmas music in January or greeting people with “Merry Christmas” throughout the year. Rather, I’m wondering how the reality of Christmas might transform our experience of our work.

In Luke 2:17-20 we see examples of people who experienced the first Christmas going back to work. Mary, we’re told, “treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart” (Luke 2:19). Though Luke doesn’t say it explicitly, we know that she did her treasuring and pondering while caring for her newborn infant, which is no small act of work. For Mary, labor didn’t end with the birth of Jesus. It just began. Yet, in the midst of her mothering efforts, she reflected upon what had happened to her and what she had done, paying special attention to the “treasures” God had given her.

Perhaps you and I could continue to “treasure” and “ponder” the good news of Christmas when we’re back at our daily work. Perhaps we could rejoice in the truth of Emmanuel, God with us, always, even as we tackle our email inboxes and lengthened to-do lists.

The shepherds also went back to work after they experienced the glory of the first Christmas. On their way back to the fields, they “made known what had been told them about this child” (Luke 2:17). When they got back to the place where their flocks were gathered, the shepherds were “glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen” (2:20). Yes, they were once again working, taking care of their sheep, but their work was now filled with praise.

Perhaps you and I could find ways to praise and glorify God as we do our daily work. What if you were to take a five-minute break in the middle of the day to offer thanks and praise for God’s gifts? How might your work be different if you were intentional about glorifying God as you worked? What if you were to pray at the beginning and middle of your day, “Dear Lord, be glorified in all I do at work today”?

I’m all for Christmas celebrations and I’m all for taking time off from work. But the good news of Christmas is that God entered into real, full, ordinary human life through Jesus, the Son of God. God isn’t present only on special holidays, but in every facet of our lives, including our work. The good news of Christmas is that when we go back to work, God is there, with us, in us, guiding us, blessing us, being glorified in us.

Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the High Calling archive, hosted by the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Advent Reflection: Sharing the Good News.

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