When I was a child, I heard a slogan: “Monday to the seventh Day, the more you work, the more you’ll be paid.” To boost morale, company leaders would lead their subordinates to chant this before starting work on Monday, as if working seven days a week is normal. When I grew up and entered the workplace, I experienced more fully that “Hong Kong people really like going to work!” This saying by Hong Kong people is meant to be humorous or self-mocking. I remember a day when a typhoon named “Mangkhut” was hoisted at hurricane signal number 10. The weather was very bad, but once the signal was removed, despite collapsed scaffoldings and trees in many places, Hong Kong people immediately took various means of transportation to rush back to their workplaces. Of course, it could be that they really liked their jobs or due to pressure from their bosses — but most likely it was both. After the epidemic, the world began to work in another mode — working from home, and work spread to daily lives and families. I know many church brothers and sisters who came to the UK and are still employed by companies in Hong Kong. This is nevertheless a good thing.
Living in the UK, work and life balance is relatively good. However, while work might not be as busy as in Hong Kong, there are more cooking, housework, gardening, etc., as well as learning English; and to better understand the British culture, many people participate in different volunteer work, so they are still very busy every day. At work, we must meet the requirements of our bosses, clients, and colleagues; at home, we have to fulfill our responsibilities as husbands, wives, parents, or children; in the church, we have the roles of serving, attending group activities, and caring for brothers and sisters; so, our schedule is full every day. Living such a busy life, we can easily lose focus and direction, making life very confusing.
Our Lord Jesus set the best example for us. Because of His ability to cast out demons and heal diseases, His reputation spread throughout Galilee. The Bible often describes crowds coming to see Jesus, with the numbers reaching thousands. Facing the needs and calls of the people, He was busy, running around serving and preaching, but could not take a moment’s rest for himself. However, Jesus knew that prayer was an indispensable part of His life. Because He had to know what work God had entrusted to Him; and amid busy work,
He might get lost and neglect important things, so He often stayed alone in the wilderness to pray.
Some people say, “Prayer is letting your heart cry out to God. If we neglect to pray, we will miss the opportunity. This is ‘not letting God add the driving force to our lives’. ‘When we pray, we give God the best opportunity to let His perfect will to replenish the strength our souls need.’” I hope we will not forget to pray in our lives, and through God’s help, our lives will be busy but not chaotic.
Rev. Pandora Li