Work and Money -- Sunday School Lesson

Who works? What is work? What is money? Where does it come from? How do we get it? What did people do before there was money? In those days, if you wanted an item that someone else had, how could you get it? These are some of the questions that we want to answer in this chapter.

What is work? What is play?

Which do you like better, work or play? ________________ Why is this so?

As you think about work and play, which is more important? ________________ Why is this so?

How Important Is Work?

Work is something that everyone must do if he or she is to be healthy on the inside and healthy on the outside: healthy in one’s soul (the "Me" inside my body) and healthy in one’s society, where one lives.

What happens if a person fails to work? What happens if a person fails to move his (or her) body or work his (or her) body? What happens if a person fails to work his (or her) mind to think and to learn?

What happens if a person fails to work at entering into his (or her) relationships with other people where he (or she) lives? Let’s think about where we live:

We need to work at making where we live (house, city, state, country) a place where we can grow up and have all the benefits (advantages, those things which are good for a person) which meet our daily needs such as...

Think about each of these things. Do people have to work so that you can have food on your plate (think of the farmers, truck drivers, companies that process and package the food, people that work in the grocery stores, etc.)? Do people have to work so that you can have clothing? Water? Heat? Are there policemen working right now so that you can live in safety? Are there firemen and doctors and nurses on duty right now? Are you thankful for these people who do this important work?

He Can But He Won’t

What do we call someone who does not work when he or she is able to work? L __ __ __

A lazy person is a person who is not willing to work. Is the lazy person able to work? ________ Does the lazy person want to work? ______ Can the lazy person work? ______ Will the lazy person work? ______ Does the lazy person like to work? ______

The Bible uses two other words to describe a lazy person. Both of these words start with the letter "S":

1. S________________ (Proverbs 6:6). This word describes a person who is lazy and inactive and who would rather stay in bed than work.

2. The S________________ man (Proverbs 12:27 and 24). A sloth is a slow moving mammal that lives in South and Central America. This animal hangs from the branches of trees with its back downward (upside down) as it feeds on leaves and fruits. There are some people who are slow moving like this sloth and they do not seem to get very much done. Read Proverbs 12:27. Did the slothful man have enough energy to hunt? Did he have enough energy to cook what he brought back from the hunt? ______

Have you ever known a person who had enough energy to play outside but later did not seem to have enough energy to put away all the things he (or she) was playing with (bicycle, balls, etc.)?

What is the opposite of lazy? This is the person who is hardworking, diligent (Proverbs 10:4; 12:24,27), careful, and industrious. The sloth reminds us of the lazy person. What animal reminds us of the diligent person (Proverbs 6:6-8)? ______________ Have you ever met a lazy ant? ______

The diligent person is the one who works at moving his (or her) body (to get out of the bed or the chair or the sofa, etc.). This person tries to do his part in the place where he lives.

He Is Willing But He Can’t

The lazy person can but he is not willing. There are some people who are willing to work but they can’t. They are unable to work. They do not work, but it is not because they are lazy; it is because they have a problem.

Some people have a physical problem and this is why they are unable to work. Do you know of someone like this?

Some people have a mental problem and this is why they are unable to work. They have mental problems that have not been fixed. These are problems which have been problems for too long a time. Sometimes when a person has problems for too long a time he thinks that he can do nothing about these problems: "I cannot think. I cannot move. I cannot do anything about this or that." When water starts to get cold you can still move it and you can still pour it. But when the cold water keeps getting colder for a long time then it turns to ice and it cannot be moved or poured out any more. This is what often happens when people have problems for too long without fixing them. They get set in their ways. We should remember that no problem is too hard for God to fix if a person seeks His guidance and seeks to find help.

Physical and mental problems can be possessed from birth (see John 9:1 and Acts 3:2).

Household Chores

Our parents should see that young people do a certain amount of work around the house. If and when they give you chores to do (take out the trash, wash the dishes, make your bed, straighten up your room, etc.), should you fight and fuss about the work you have to do (see Philippians 2:14)? _________

What jobs or things could we do around the house to help and to learn that each of us has a real and right and important part before God and to those around us? The same is true in the church family (see 1 Corinthians chapter 12). Every believer has a job to do just like every member of your body has a job to do. Would you be very happy if your tongue decided not to work (and you could not talk or taste things)? Would you be very happy if your eyes went on strike? Would you be alive for very long if your lungs decided not to work? Every member of your body is important and has a job to do. Every member of Christ’s body (the Church) is important and has a job to do. Every member of your family is important and has a job to do.

Remember, you should not always have to be told to do something. Are there some things that you can do around your home to help your family even though no one has told you to do these things? Have you ever asked your parents if there is anything that you can do to help?

Doing my chores helps me to develop the right attitudes of responsibility and self discipline:

1. Responsibility—this means that I have an obligation. I have been given a job to do and to be a responsible person I must do my job. If a policeman sees a robber run out of a bank with a bag of money and does nothing about it, is he being a responsible policeman? _______

2. Self Discipline—this means that I make myself do my job even though I feel like doing something else. We must learn to do our chores whether we feel like it or not. Some of you take music lessons (piano, flute, guitar, etc.). Do you always feel like practicing? To practice a half hour each day takes much self discipline! Often we need to do what is right, even though we may not feel like doing it. And usually when we do right, even though we do not feel like it, our feelings later change and we are thankful that we did what was right, and we feel good about it.

What kind of attitudes do you have? What kind of attitudes should you have? How can you fix the wrong attitudes that you have? Remember, God can help you to show His love and kindness, even in the small duties of life.

Doing My Part as a Family Member

What benefits will my family enjoy if I do my part? If I share the work load then there will be less for my parents to do and there will be more time and energy left for good times of family togetherness. I need to ask myself, "How can I take some of the load away from Mom and Dad?" In this way I am a part of the home team, as we all have a part in a growing home.

Remember, not all jobs are the same. Some are easy and some are hard. Some are fun and some are not so fun. Some are clean and some are dirty. Some jobs we make (because we messed up our room and messed up our bed) and some jobs others have made (everyone helped to dirty the dishes, not just one person).

Should a five-year-old be able to do what a ten-year-old can do?

Should a ten-year-old be able to do what a fifteen-year-old can do? Also we should remember that persons (girls/boys; women/men) differ in skills, interests, etc. Some do jobs with more energy and pep if they like them. But some jobs that you have to do are not so nice. Remember to ask for and to look for a variety of jobs. Learn how to do different kinds of things.

It is very important to do my job on time. Should I need to be told three times or more before I do my job? _______ It is also very important to do my job the very best that I can. If I did my best then I should be glad not sad. It may not have been good enough, but I will learn to do better in time. Others will have to be patient with me (and I will have to learn to be patient with others). They may not be patient with me, but God will— "the Lord is ______________________________ (patient) toward us" (2 Peter 3:9).

Try to always finish the job. It is not usually good to leave a job half finished. Work until the job is done and work until the job is done well, and then you will feel good about it. A job well done brings much satisfaction and gladness to the heart. And remember, even if no one else appreciates or notices the work you have done, God does, and He is the One we should do our work for (Colossians 3:23).

Money

Some get an allowance (a certain amount of money given out usually once a week). Some earn money. Some have no money.

Money needs to be used wisely and carefully. God has much to say about money and giving in 2 Corinthians chapters 8 and 9. The first thing God wants us to give Him is not our money; what is it (2 Corinthians 8:5)? ______________________ The Lord Jesus Christ gave Himself for us when He came to this earth to save us (see 2 Corinthians 8:9). The Lord Jesus Christ is God’s unspeakable __________ (2 Corinthians 9:15—the gift beyond words! Words cannot even be found to describe how wonderful this gift is.)

You only can use wisely what you have. If a person has $1.00, then he can use this $1.00 wisely. If a person has $100.00 then he can use this $100.00 wisely.

Does money mean happiness? Are all millionaires happy people? Many professional athletes make a lot of money, but does this mean they are all happy? Can a person with very little money be happy? Why or why not? If a person counts on money for happiness, he will be very disappointed. Counting on money always disappoints.

As we think about the family we see that we once again we need to have balance:

The family can pray together and live together and work together. Each member of the family should have a care and concern for every other member of the family. If even one family member does not cooperate and work at connecting with other family members, then the family can become out of balance and there can be problems.

There is a difference between what family members want and what they really need. A son or daughter may want many things that are very costly, but he does not really need them. Did you ever lose power for a day or more? Did you learn that it is possible to live without electricity? Remember, just few centuries ago, no one used electricity. It had not yet been discovered. People had to live without all of the modern conveniences that we enjoy today. In Matthew 6:28-33 we learn to trust God to take care of us and to meet our real needs. Does He really know what we need (Matthew 6:32)? ________

In the family some have only a mother and some have only a father and some have neither. If this is true, then it is very important for the young person to be a real help at home (look at the sketch above: what if there were no Mom or no Dad to hold up the bar?). Those who do have both parents need to care about and understand those who do not. They do not have the same situation that you do and they have certain problems that you do not have:

· there may be no one home when they come home from school (the parent might be working)

But if I know the Lord God who is able to save me (Hebrews 7:25—"He is __________ also to __________ them to the uttermost;" see also Psalm 33:16-20) and who is able to save my situation (the circumstances and conditions that I face), then He can help me to do right. He can help me to grow up to be a good worker ("as ________________ together with H_____ " – 2 Corinthians 6:1) and a good handler of money and possessions (2 Timothy 1:12).

What should we be content with (Hebrews 13:5)? _____________________________________

As we work, who is right there to be our Helper (Hebrews 13:6)? _____________________