“..Paul went to see them, and because he (Paul) was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them” Acts 18:2-3
The apostle Paul had a day job – tent-making. He took it on because he did not want to burden the churches he ministered to. As far as possible, he would finance his ministry trips to ensure that the gospel would be preached far and wide.
It was no easy feat – hard labour to be exact. While the remuneration from the stint is not fully known, he had to make enough tents to cover his personal travel, giving to the churches he ministered to, and stay financially free from burdening others even though he did receive support in ministry from time to time. It also served as an example for others to follow suit.
“We worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you” 2 Thess 3:8
It is interesting to note that the Holy Spirit has inspired the mention of Paul’s day job in Scripture. It gives insights as to how we, as disciples of Christ, should go about living and discipling others to do likewise.
A key insight lies in the truth that living out and preaching the gospel are not meant to be all-out activities done to the exclusion of everything else.
The life that God has called us to live is meant to be lived in a “Scripturally-inspired, contextually-relevant” manner.
How this plays out is in the daily application in that – if you have a family to take care of, make sure they are resourced and nurtured well…and also, preach the gospel, heal the sick, cast out demons, work the miraculous.
If you have a day job that can be mentally taxing or laborious, well, steward that aspect to the best of your ability…and preach the gospel, heal the sick, cast out demons, work the miraculous.
Dear friend, the Bible reinforces the view of “working while it is still day because night comes where no man can work”, and reminds us of the rewards of our works when we stand before Him. It is imperative that we make our moments count.