Developing a Christian Work Ethic
By Debbie Leslie
For the last six or seven months, the ideas concerning a Christian Work Ethic have been formulating in my mind. It all started as I re-read the biography of Booker T Washington, ‘Up From Slavery’, who was born a slave, granted liberty by the emancipation proclamation, and who strived to gain an education for himself. To get out of the coal mines where he worked, he applied for a job as a houseboy to a Mrs Ruffner, where he learned the value of hard work and thoroughness.
‘I had heard so much about Mrs Ruffner’s severity that I was almost afraid to see her, and trembled when I went into her presence. I had not lived with her many weeks, however, before I began to understand her. I soon began to learn that, first of all, she wanted everything to be kept clean about her, that she wanted things done promptly and systematically, and that at the bottom of everything she wanted absolute honesty and frankness……….
I here repeat what I have said more than once before, that the lessons that I learned in the home of Mrs Ruffner were as valuable to me as any education I have ever gotten anywhere since………
From fearing Mrs Ruffner, I soon learned to look upon her as one of my best friends.’
During his time as a houseboy, Booker Washington was able to save some money to help him make the 400 mile journey to a school for black students. The work ethic he had developed during his time with Mrs Ruffner, enabled him to work his way right through school and college, and eventually he was able to open his own school for black people which not only gave them an academic education, but taught them the ‘dignity of manual labour.’
Washington realised that for black people to be accepted into the community they had to earn the respect of the white people. He insisted that the way to acceptance and integration was to be the most reliable hardworking person you could be.
The work ethic which he developed in himself, and the students that came to his school, seems to be in stark contrast to what is developing in our education system today, not only in secular society, but also among believers.
I’ve been disturbed by the rising tide of humanistic philosophy invading the Christian homeschooling community over the last few years. While there are many different styles and methods of homeschooling, surely the ultimate goal for Christian parents is to see their children genuinely born again, and becoming conformed to the image of Christ.
I’m frequently hearing the term ‘Child Centred Education’, which seems to mean that the children themselves choose to do what they want to do, when they want to do it, in the way and manner in which they want to do it, and that everything has to be fun.
Proverbs 29v15 ‘a child left to himself bringeth his mother shame.
Proverbs 22v6 ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
Both of these verses speak of the parents being in the control seat, not the child. Christian training is always training in submission. It doesn’t have to be severe, but it does have to be firm. This is true in the academic training of the child, as well as in the spiritual and social training. Learning to do what you’ve been asked to do, in the manner in which you’re asked to do it, and when you’re asked to do it, helps to form a Christian work ethic, and will help to instil wisdom into the heart of the child, as he learns that there are always consequences to his/her behaviour.
This doesn’t mean that the child never gets to choose to do something. There are many opportunities where they can make their own decisions, but always within the sphere of parental supervision until they are old enough and wise enough to make properly informed choices.
E.g. when a child is allowed to make his own choices regarding the food that he eats, he is likely to only choose what he enjoys and could well end up with health problems in later life due to an imbalanced diet. We are beginning to see the results of this in our own society where more and more children are being assessed as obese, and large numbers are having to have their teeth removed, even as young as 6 and 7 years old, due to poor nutritional choices, and lack of parental control.
To put this in an academic setting, a child left to himself, may never learn to write legibly, read fluently, spell correctly, or be able to work out mathematical problems, because he doesn’t see the point of it, and doesn’t enjoy it. He may excel in what he is naturally gifted at or interested in, be it sports, art, music, or even academics, but may never develop a Christian work ethic, simply because he has only ever done what he wanted to do.
At the beginning of the year, (2011) I heard a Radio 4 news report on the drop of UK standards of education as compared to other countries. Students from the UK were given the opportunity to visit several Asian countries to see what their education systems were like, and to report back on their work ethic. Their unanimous opinion was that the standard of education was far superior, and the students were keen to work as hard as they could. Parents encouraged their children to work hard, and the classrooms were quiet and peaceful as pupils got on with their work, even taking on extra lessons after school and at the weekends to improve their grades. Teachers were also dedicated and hard-working, and didn’t appear to have the same pressure of crowd control, and lack of respect from their pupils, which seems to be a major problem in many UK schools. The overall impression was of a society that valued education and hard work and encouraged its children to do well.
The Daily Telegraph dated Saturday 22nd January 2011, reiterates these findings. Over the last 10-12 years, Britain has seen the “Catastrophic decline in educational standards.” International league tables for education shows that Britain has fallen from
7th to 25th place for literacy
4th to 16th place in science
8th to 28th place in Maths
While there are many contributing factors in this decline, one of the major forces at work has been, “...our own willingness as a relatively wealthy and cushioned society to give children an easy ride that will leave them floundering in an increasingly crowded, ultra-competitive, knowledge-based global economy.”
In other words, we have not given them a work ethic.
As Christian homeschooling parents, we are in the right place at the right time to do something different with our children. We can give them a quality education, and develop in them a Christian work ethic that will make them invaluable to the work place, and to the community in which they live.
Colossians 3v22-23. ‘Servants (workers), obey in all things your masters (employers) according to the flesh; not with eye service, as men pleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men’.
This verse sums up what a Christian work ethic should be. Whatever we’re doing, we should be doing it onto the Lord. We need to teach that to our children when they are young. We need to teach them to see the world and their place in it through biblical glasses. Whether they are helping Mum with the dishes, or learning to do algebraic equations, everything is to be done “as unto the Lord.”
Singleness of heart is a term used throughout scripture, and is what God is looking for in His people.
‘God neither loves halting nor halving; he will be served truly and totally. The royal law is, “Thou shalt love and serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul.” Thomas Brooks in The Treasury of David Volume Three.
Humanistic philosophy which puts the child in the centre of his own wee world, where he only does something if he enjoys it, and resents doing what he doesn’t enjoy, runs totally against the example of scripture. There is a song by Don Fransisco that says “Jesus didn’t die for you because it was fun, He hung there for love because it had to be done.” That is the attitude we need to try to teach our children. Many, many times, through-out our whole life there will be tough things that have to be done whether we like it or not. A child who has learned to do everything to the glory of God will be ready to knuckle down and get the job done. A child who has developed the habit of only doing what he wants, when he wants will struggle with anything that goes against his own pleasure.
When Christians become indispensible to the work place, because they can be depended on to consistently arrive on time, get the work done thoroughly and cheerfully, and not abuse sick leave or other employment benefits, they will surely have a better opportunity for witness in the work place, in an increasingly anti-Christian society.
2 Timothy 2v15. “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
The word study here means; to make effort, be prompt or earnest, be diligent, endeavour, labour.
While we must guard against perfectionism and a workaholic tendency, we can develop a healthy attitude to work in our children, both from our own example and by the teachings of the scriptures. Yes, our children must have time to play and develop their own interests and hobbies. Families need relaxation time, and holidays are important to our physical, mental and spiritual health, but we must remember that we were saved to serve. In the day to day scheme of things, work must come before play, and duty before our own pleasure.
A Christian work ethic brings glory to God and blessings to the people who depend on our service, be it our employer, people in the community, family or church members.
Whatever method or materials we use to educate our children, let us be sure that it is in line with biblical principles, teaching our children to be God conscious in all that they do.
Debbie and Paul Leslie live in Derry, Northern Ireland. They have been homeschooling their four children for the past 12 years. Aimee 22 is at uni doing a degree in agricultural technology, Sophie 17 is in her last year of homeschooling, Joshua 15, and Ben 13.
In addition, Paul & Debbie are the TEACH regional representatives in the North of Ireland.
‘I had heard so much about Mrs Ruffner’s severity that I was almost afraid to see her, and trembled when I went into her presence. I had not lived with her many weeks, however, before I began to understand her. I soon began to learn that, first of all, she wanted everything to be kept clean about her, that she wanted things done promptly and systematically, and that at the bottom of everything she wanted absolute honesty and frankness……….
I here repeat what I have said more than once before, that the lessons that I learned in the home of Mrs Ruffner were as valuable to me as any education I have ever gotten anywhere since………
From fearing Mrs Ruffner, I soon learned to look upon her as one of my best friends.’
During his time as a houseboy, Booker Washington was able to save some money to help him make the 400 mile journey to a school for black students. The work ethic he had developed during his time with Mrs Ruffner, enabled him to work his way right through school and college, and eventually he was able to open his own school for black people which not only gave them an academic education, but taught them the ‘dignity of manual labour.’
Washington realised that for black people to be accepted into the community they had to earn the respect of the white people. He insisted that the way to acceptance and integration was to be the most reliable hardworking person you could be.
The work ethic which he developed in himself, and the students that came to his school, seems to be in stark contrast to what is developing in our education system today, not only in secular society, but also among believers.
I’ve been disturbed by the rising tide of humanistic philosophy invading the Christian homeschooling community over the last few years. While there are many different styles and methods of homeschooling, surely the ultimate goal for Christian parents is to see their children genuinely born again, and becoming conformed to the image of Christ.
I’m frequently hearing the term ‘Child Centred Education’, which seems to mean that the children themselves choose to do what they want to do, when they want to do it, in the way and manner in which they want to do it, and that everything has to be fun.
Proverbs 29v15 ‘a child left to himself bringeth his mother shame.
Proverbs 22v6 ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
Both of these verses speak of the parents being in the control seat, not the child. Christian training is always training in submission. It doesn’t have to be severe, but it does have to be firm. This is true in the academic training of the child, as well as in the spiritual and social training. Learning to do what you’ve been asked to do, in the manner in which you’re asked to do it, and when you’re asked to do it, helps to form a Christian work ethic, and will help to instil wisdom into the heart of the child, as he learns that there are always consequences to his/her behaviour.
This doesn’t mean that the child never gets to choose to do something. There are many opportunities where they can make their own decisions, but always within the sphere of parental supervision until they are old enough and wise enough to make properly informed choices.
E.g. when a child is allowed to make his own choices regarding the food that he eats, he is likely to only choose what he enjoys and could well end up with health problems in later life due to an imbalanced diet. We are beginning to see the results of this in our own society where more and more children are being assessed as obese, and large numbers are having to have their teeth removed, even as young as 6 and 7 years old, due to poor nutritional choices, and lack of parental control.
To put this in an academic setting, a child left to himself, may never learn to write legibly, read fluently, spell correctly, or be able to work out mathematical problems, because he doesn’t see the point of it, and doesn’t enjoy it. He may excel in what he is naturally gifted at or interested in, be it sports, art, music, or even academics, but may never develop a Christian work ethic, simply because he has only ever done what he wanted to do.
At the beginning of the year, (2011) I heard a Radio 4 news report on the drop of UK standards of education as compared to other countries. Students from the UK were given the opportunity to visit several Asian countries to see what their education systems were like, and to report back on their work ethic. Their unanimous opinion was that the standard of education was far superior, and the students were keen to work as hard as they could. Parents encouraged their children to work hard, and the classrooms were quiet and peaceful as pupils got on with their work, even taking on extra lessons after school and at the weekends to improve their grades. Teachers were also dedicated and hard-working, and didn’t appear to have the same pressure of crowd control, and lack of respect from their pupils, which seems to be a major problem in many UK schools. The overall impression was of a society that valued education and hard work and encouraged its children to do well.
The Daily Telegraph dated Saturday 22nd January 2011, reiterates these findings. Over the last 10-12 years, Britain has seen the “Catastrophic decline in educational standards.” International league tables for education shows that Britain has fallen from
7th to 25th place for literacy
4th to 16th place in science
8th to 28th place in Maths
While there are many contributing factors in this decline, one of the major forces at work has been, “...our own willingness as a relatively wealthy and cushioned society to give children an easy ride that will leave them floundering in an increasingly crowded, ultra-competitive, knowledge-based global economy.”
In other words, we have not given them a work ethic.
As Christian homeschooling parents, we are in the right place at the right time to do something different with our children. We can give them a quality education, and develop in them a Christian work ethic that will make them invaluable to the work place, and to the community in which they live.
Colossians 3v22-23. ‘Servants (workers), obey in all things your masters (employers) according to the flesh; not with eye service, as men pleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men’.
This verse sums up what a Christian work ethic should be. Whatever we’re doing, we should be doing it onto the Lord. We need to teach that to our children when they are young. We need to teach them to see the world and their place in it through biblical glasses. Whether they are helping Mum with the dishes, or learning to do algebraic equations, everything is to be done “as unto the Lord.”
Singleness of heart is a term used throughout scripture, and is what God is looking for in His people.
‘God neither loves halting nor halving; he will be served truly and totally. The royal law is, “Thou shalt love and serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul.” Thomas Brooks in The Treasury of David Volume Three.
Humanistic philosophy which puts the child in the centre of his own wee world, where he only does something if he enjoys it, and resents doing what he doesn’t enjoy, runs totally against the example of scripture. There is a song by Don Fransisco that says “Jesus didn’t die for you because it was fun, He hung there for love because it had to be done.” That is the attitude we need to try to teach our children. Many, many times, through-out our whole life there will be tough things that have to be done whether we like it or not. A child who has learned to do everything to the glory of God will be ready to knuckle down and get the job done. A child who has developed the habit of only doing what he wants, when he wants will struggle with anything that goes against his own pleasure.
When Christians become indispensible to the work place, because they can be depended on to consistently arrive on time, get the work done thoroughly and cheerfully, and not abuse sick leave or other employment benefits, they will surely have a better opportunity for witness in the work place, in an increasingly anti-Christian society.
2 Timothy 2v15. “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
The word study here means; to make effort, be prompt or earnest, be diligent, endeavour, labour.
While we must guard against perfectionism and a workaholic tendency, we can develop a healthy attitude to work in our children, both from our own example and by the teachings of the scriptures. Yes, our children must have time to play and develop their own interests and hobbies. Families need relaxation time, and holidays are important to our physical, mental and spiritual health, but we must remember that we were saved to serve. In the day to day scheme of things, work must come before play, and duty before our own pleasure.
A Christian work ethic brings glory to God and blessings to the people who depend on our service, be it our employer, people in the community, family or church members.
Whatever method or materials we use to educate our children, let us be sure that it is in line with biblical principles, teaching our children to be God conscious in all that they do.
Debbie and Paul Leslie live in Derry, Northern Ireland. They have been homeschooling their four children for the past 12 years. Aimee 22 is at uni doing a degree in agricultural technology, Sophie 17 is in her last year of homeschooling, Joshua 15, and Ben 13.
In addition, Paul & Debbie are the TEACH regional representatives in the North of Ireland.
