The Futility of Workaholism

"It is vain for you to rise up early,

To retire late,

To eat the bread of painful labors;

For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep."

Psalm 127:2

Although the Bible never mentions the word "workaholic", this verse certainly speaks to it. God doesn't want us to be slothful, but He doesn't want us to work so much that we neglect worship of Him, our relationship with our family, or the rest we need. God established rest from work and He intends for us to follow His example. When we feel we have to work beyond reasonable hours to get what we need we rob God of the honor of blessing us. "God gives to those who have learned to rest in Him, not to those who strive in their own strength. In the words of the Psalmist as translated by the NASB, 'For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.' Put in its simplest terms, the blessings of God are never gained by self-effort, no matter how fervent or how prolonged. God’s blessings are the product of His grace, appropriated by faith, not works. Work is futile when we strive, by means of it, to gain God’s blessings." (Bob Deffinbaugh