Labor Day – Honoring Workers

Photo by Yury Kim

For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.” We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat. And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good. 2 Thessalonians 3:10-13 NIV

Labor Day has undergone significant changes since Grover Cleveland signed the law on June 28, 1894, establishing the holiday. I doubt President Cleveland would have imagined that this one signature would become his most defining contribution to American history.

The working world has undergone massive shifts between 1894 and 2025. Agriculture no longer dominates as the number one employer; factories have closed, being replaced by the service industry. Technology and IT specialists are current hot specialties, but now every worker is facing a cosmic shift as AI starts to unravel the world of work.

Labor Day serves as an annual celebration of workers and their achievements, though many now only consider the day the end of summer. Labor Day had its roots during one of America’s more dismal seasons for workers. The average American worked 12-hour days, seven days a week, simply to make a basic living. Children, as young as 5 or 6, toiled in mills, factories, and mines across the country. The idea of a “workingmen’s holiday” began to take root as a greater number of workers left their farms and found work in factories, until finally, following the violent Pullman strike, which resulted in the deaths of more than a dozen workers, Labor Day was recognized.

President Cleveland could not have imagined the world of 2025; there are some days, neither can I. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates says, “Artificial intelligence (AI) will ultimately render humans unnecessary for most things and predicts that this will happen very soon.”  In a recent podcast episode of Express Adda, Gates said, “No one was born to work. Jobs are a product of scarcity.”

Gates envisions a future where the traditional work model is obsolete, thanks to AI’s evolution. He argues that AI can provide for our needs, and work will cease to be a vital obligation. “For centuries, we worked to survive. Now, we must imagine what to do with our lives if work is no longer the condition for living.” (from an article by Diego Perez Morales)

God would most definitely disagree with Mr. Gates on his philosophy of “no one was born to work.” From the very beginning, God created work as a blessing, not as a scarcity model but as a way of value, dignity, and participation. Adam and Eve were not placed in the Garden of Eden to sit back and take it easy. God assigned them the task of caring for his creation, placing his trust in their care for his creation. From that trust came the dignity of work, the joy of seeing something completed, and ultimately, fellowship with God.

Work was never a punishment but a blessing and a privilege that God gave us. “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food. And it was so.” Genesis 2:29-30

Howard Tucker doesn’t see work from a scarcity model. He holds the Guinness World Record for the oldest practicing doctor. At 102, the neurologist has been working in medicine for almost 80 years. In an interview with Today’s Show Al Roker on May 29, 2025, Dr. Tucker said, “Retirement, I think, is the enemy of longevity…You have to have some purpose in life and get up in the morning and know what you’re about…. It’s fun staying alive and working,” he said. “it’s delightful work. Every day I learn something new.” (Today Show, A. Pawlowski)

David Frank doesn’t see work from a scarcity model. Mr. Frank turned 100 last November and celebrated with friends, family, and co-workers on his job at the Windsor, Ontario Home Depot store, where he has worked for the last 23 years. He is officially the oldest Home Depot employee. Mr. Frank said, “Work is one of those good four-letter words, I like it.” He said he enjoys working in retail because “You get to meet the customers themselves, you hear their problems, and you get to help solve them.” (Millar Holmes-Hill, Windsor Star, Ontario)

Waldo McBurney wouldn’t have understood work from a scarcity model. Mr. McBurney worked until shortly before his death at the age of 106. McBurney was named “America’s Oldest Worker for 2006.”

We should be grateful that there is a special day set aside to honor workers. Labor Day recognizes the value and contribution that every kind of work gives to society, and as followers of Jesus, what is given to God. The kind of work is not important; the determination to face each day giving your best is what is important.

Plumber, electrician, lawyer, doctor, nurse, preacher, garbage collector, teacher, homemaker, software engineer, and the list goes on and on with the ultimate command that, “Whatever task you must do, work as if your soul depends on it, as for the Lord and not for humans.” (Col 3:23 NRSV)

“Dear God, today we honor laborers in our country, and I admit, many times I take them for granted. So thank you for reminding me that every worker I see—and even those who work behind the scenes—bear your image. They are valuable and worthy of respect. So today, Lord, would you bless the workers? Help them to see their value both for what they do and for who they are.

I pray for those who put their lives at risk to maintain infrastructures, climb tall electrical towers, service machinery that is dangerous. Protect them, Lord. Let them come home to their families each night.

And Lord, I pray for the employers and CEOs, those who make decisions about salaries and work conditions. I pray that you would help them to make wise decisions, not based on greed or worldly values, but on godly values. I know not everyone operates from that perspective, but I pray that you would begin to open their eyes. Help them to see that everything they enjoy comes from the hands of the workers.

Thank you, Lord, for honoring workers throughout Scripture. Give us your love for all people. Help us to celebrate them not only in our words, but in how we treat them every day, not just on Labor Day.

With respect and gratitude, I lift up this prayer for laborers today. In the name of Jesus. Amen.”(Abide-Stephanie Reeves)

Blessings on this Labor Day,

God is great!