May 16 - Slaves

May 16 - Slaves - 1 Timothy 6:1-2

Diane says:
Paul doesn't debate the rightness or wrongness of slavery. For this culture, this was a way of life. The entire economy of the ancient world was based on slave labor since there were no machines to do the work. Slaves were paid a normal wage and could save to buy their freedom. They often lived with their masters and ate at the master's table. Farmers generally had at least one slave to help with, not just do, the work.

Christianity changed the relationship between many slaves and masters. Slaves became Christians while their masters did not. Paul insisted that they remain respectful, always being conscientious that they were living a life that showed Jesus Christ in a good way. Other slaves were all of a sudden put into a position where they would worship with their masters who had also become Christians. Paul reminded them that they were not to take liberties with this newfound relationship, but were to become even better at their jobs.

It is always difficult to transform a relationship when one or both have become Christians. But, in all cases, Christ should be glorified.

Rebecca says:
My very first job was as a bus girl at a Greek restaurant where my mother worked. She was the bartender and a very good friend with the owner and with her connections I got the job. I was only 14 and that job was a baptism by fire. Mr. Tony was a man prone to fits of rage and yelling. It was always busy, but on Friday nights it was ridiculously crazy. They had a seafood buffet that packed the house non stop. Mr. Tony’s mindset was "in and out" and there was immense pressure on the bussers to get the tables cleared and reset quickly. The night was a vicious cycle of him screaming, us jumping, and plates flying.

One Friday night the two other bussers had enough and walked out midway through their shift. They had been talking about it for weeks and decided to finally take a stand and leave him in a lurch to prove a point. Oh how I wanted to walk with them! I wanted to throw down that apron and tell Mr. Tony what he could do with his Alaskan king crab legs, but I couldn’t because I was 14 and my mother was my ride home. So I did the next best thing, I ran into the kitchen and started crying.

I was upset and overwhelmed and I knew that he would inevitably take all that anger out on me, and on top of it now I was left to bus every table in the house all night long. My mother came in and I begged her to let me leave, begged her to just let me quit. She said no. I decided at that point that the next best thing would be to act so horrific he would fire me and just as that brilliant plan wove together in my brain, my mother must have caught the glimmer in my eye and said something along the lines of: "Mr. Tony is a dear friend of mine, he has been good to me for a lot of years and you represent me out there. You have this job because you're my kid, so don't you go out there and do something that will make him think less of me just because it’s tough and you're pouting. Go out there and work and don’t make me look bad." So I sucked it up, put on my big girl panties and went out on the floor and worked, and was so exhausted I wanted to collapse when it was over.

I wish I could tell you Mr. Tony came over and told me he appreciated my hard work after that night. I wish I could say that night changed things for us and from that point forward he was kind and stopped yelling. I can't, it never changed. And when school finally started again and my mother said my time was finished and I could leave with a clear conscience I was ecstatic. That was one of the hardest jobs I have ever had.

I remembered that as I read this passage in Timothy. I felt entitled to certain treatment at that restaurant because of who my mom was. Though I wasn't a slave, I could see how a slave might believe they too are entitled to a certain level of treatment and privilege once they became a believer because now they were aware of a pretty powerful Father. We tend to do that even today - believe our life should be better, easier because of our Heavenly connections. The truth is, it isn’t easier because He makes it all go away. Jesus never said He would remove the yoke; He just traded it out for one that is easier and doesn’t strangle us the way the world’s does. (Matthew 11:30) His burden, though weighty, doesn't bear down on us the way society does and He shoulders the load for us. He carries the brunt of the burden and gives us just enough to strengthen us and develop a little muscle.

Just because we have a Father who is very influential does not mean we are entitled to Him using that influence to temper our masters. Sometimes God puts the Mr. Tonys in our life to mold and refine us. Just because we are believers doesn't mean we don't have to work, it just means that now there is a Spirit inside of us that enables us to withstand and rise up in those hard and pressing moments. (2 Sam 22:33-35)

I was a reflection of my mother at that job. What I did good or bad affected the way Mr. Tony viewed her and that night under all that pressure and heat I hope that particular master saw that my mother didn’t raise a quitter. She engrained in me a hard working, ethical, and reliable portion of my character that stuck it out even when the situation was bleak. There are a million situations daily at home or work where we too are reflections of our Father. In the heat and strain of tough days it is then that the world is able to see the character that He has engrained in us.

Occasionally the Mr. Tonys in our life are believers and how much more should we step up the plate just as Paul said because they are dear to us. They are family and because of that it is not us who are entitled but they who have enjoyed that entitlement to a blessed life from our hands because in whatever we did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, we did for Him (Matthew 25:40).

It is easy to be a slave to God. Though I feel no chains and He has set me free, He most definitely owns my heart and because of that I am grateful and eager to work every shift for Him, even the hard ones when necessary. But what I must remember is that sometimes the very shift He asks me to work is under another man's watch. Sometimes God appoints a temporary master for a season that I must serve and respect regardless of what he believes. And I must work hard to remember that it is His connections that keep me in that position and decide daily to actively pursue each endeavor with a level of service and love that would represent my Father in the very best light. Because after all, we are the light of the world aren’t we? (Matthew 5:14)