TIP 41. WORKAHOLICS
Man by nature is compelled to be a doer, we often need to overcome challenges and obstacles in life to feel a sense of achievement. For many men it is difficult to just to sit still and be, rather than do. This can be both a blessing and a curse. Being a doer can be a blessing in the fact that we can achieve a great deal through constant application to a task or goal and see the biggest mountains or obstacles fall. Being a doer can also become a curse if we allow an over zealous work ethic to begin to dominate our lives, at the expense of everything else, especially our family life.
Sometimes men can find solace in a work environment that they can control, especially if they are good at it. They can retreat from emotional or relationship issues that they may struggle with at home, and throw themselves into their career. This can become a type of denial, when they constantly look to avoid the real issues of life and exchange it for a work environment where they are not required to input emotionally. This is often the life experience of the workaholic.
One of the downsides of becoming a workaholic is that you often miss out on the very thing that could give you a lasting sense of achievement, rather than the fleeting sense of achievement that comes through work. In business there is always going to be the need to close one more deal, get one more customer. In business, at the end of even the best month you can go from hero to zero very quickly.
Making money in business is never going to give a lasting sense of achievement, because deep down that is not what man longs for. We were created with a most basic and primary need 'to give and to receive love', and this is outworked in family life. Even with all it's challenges and conflicts family life is God's way to bring a tremendous amount of fulfilment into the heart of a man.
I have never spoken to anyone lying on their deathbed who wishes they spent more time in the office, but many men regret not having spent more quality time with their wife and family. The power of the ego in man is often only broken when faced with a life or death situation. Suddenly everything that is truly important in life comes to the surface, and all else fades away.
All that we see around us is passing away, and our time here is very limited, how then should we live our lives? There are eternal consequences for every action or inaction, I would encourage you to always focus on eternal outcomes.
Dads' Call To Action:
Take the time to enjoy the journey and the wonderful joys of family life which God has given you. Stop and focus on the real issues.
(Ecclesiastes 2 v 17)
Therefore I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me, for all is vanity and grasping for the wind.
(Mark 6 v 31)
And He said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."