工作只有報酬還不夠

他提到：「目標和報酬只是人類活動中的一小部分，當報酬成為我們的目標，我們只實踐了工作的部分意義」。當你把這句話大聲唸出來並且仔細思考幾分鐘後，你能夠了解作者這句話的意義嗎？你是否同意他的說法嗎？

這句話並非否定設定目標去追求報酬。一個企業要能生存，的確必須追求利潤和成長。但經濟上的報酬以及工作的成就感僅僅是我們每天努力的動機之一，工作本身其實就有它存在的價值。

最近一次來自天主教宗方濟各的通諭(給天主教徒的指導信件) (註2)主要內容談到生態問題。在文中教宗方濟各提出他的觀察：「耶穌每天都用他的手去接觸神所創造的事物，他的一生大部分的時間都專注在一點也不起眼的簡單生活上，甚至人還質疑他不就是那個木匠，馬利亞的兒子嗎？」（馬可福音6章3節）。他把人類的勞力工作聖化，賦予它特殊的重要意義，為的是要幫助我們成長。教宗若望保羅二世也說：「藉著與為我們釘十字架的耶穌聯合，人類為自己找到一個與神同工救贖自己的方法。」

的確，聖經一開始就教導我們：工作是神的意思，不是處罰，而是祂對人類的心意之一。

神恩膏我們做祂的管家。 聖經說神指派人類管理祂所造的萬物，給我們管理的權柄。「上帝就照自己的形像造人，乃是照皀他的形像造男造女。上帝就賜福給他們，又對他們說：要生養眾多，遍滿地面，治理這地，也要管理海裏的魚、空中的鳥，和地上各樣行動的活物。」（創世紀1章27-28節）

單純追求報酬的工作是不夠的 。我們設定工作目標並努力實現它是對的，然而一個目標完成之後另外一個接踵而來，不斷達成目標追求報酬並不是工作的全部。「凡我眼所求的，我沒有留下不給它的；我心所樂的，我沒有禁止不享受的；因我的心為我一切所勞碌的快樂，這就是我從勞碌中所得的分。 後來，我察看我手所經營的一切事和我勞碌所成的功。誰知都是虛空，都是捕風；在日光之下毫無益處。」（傳道書2章10-11節）。「因為資財不能永有， 冠冕豈能存到萬代？」（詩篇27篇24節）

工作是榮耀神的方法之一 。只有當我們知道工作是神聖呼召的一部分，我們才能確信忠心卓越的工作會得到永生神的獎賞，因為我們都是按照祂形象所造。「無論做甚麼，都要從心裏做，像是給主做的，不是給人做的，因你們知道從主那裏必得皀基業為賞賜；你們所事奉的乃是主基督。」（歌羅西書3章23-24節）

◎註1：赫曼米勒(Herman Miller)公司的榮譽董事長，六十年來，該公司是辦公家具產業最主要的創新者，該公司也多次獲選為《財星》全美二十五家最受推崇的企業之一。他也曾經擔任福樂神學院（Fuller Theological Seminary）、希望學院（Hope College）及希望之語佈道會（Words of Hope）董事。帝普雷的著作還包括暢銷書《爵士領導》（Leadership Jazz）與《無權力領導》（Leading Without Power）等書，但是名氣最響亮的還是這本《領導的藝術》，1987年首次出版即蔚為風潮。帝普雷曾經獲選《財星》雜誌的全美商業名人堂。他二十幾年來，致力於為營利與非營利事業培養未來的領袖。(資料來源:博客來網站)

◎註2：通諭，是指天主教的教宗，對全世界天主教徒所下達的教導信件，內容為宣揚教義與道德。通常作長篇，主文為拉丁文，在發布的同時，也會有其他重要語言的譯文。文章開頭的兩個拉丁字，為通諭的正式名稱(資料來源:維基百科)

He stated, “Goals and rewards are only parts, different parts, of human activity. When rewards become our goals, we are only pursuing part of our work.” Read that aloud and chew on it for a few moments. What do you think Mr. DePree is saying – and do you agree?

This is not to say setting goals and pursuing rewards are inherently wrong to do. For a business to survive, it must make a profit and hopefully will grow, and rewards such as financial compensation and career advancement are part of our motivation for putting forth our best efforts each day. The simple activity of work in itself has intrinsic value.

In a recent “eco-encyclical,” called Laudato Si, Pope Francis offered this observation: “Jesus worked with his hands, in daily contact with the matter created by God, to which he gave form by his craftsmanship. …most of his life was dedicated to this task in a simple life which awakened no admiration at all: “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary?” (Mark 6:3). In this way he sanctified human labor and endowed it with a special significance for our development. As (Pope) John Paul II taught, “by enduring the toil of work in union with Christ crucified for us, man in a way collaborates with the Son of God for the redemption of humanity.””

Indeed, the Bible teaches work has been God”s idea from the start, and was not intended as a penalty or punishment. It was part of His purpose for mankind:

God appointed us to serve as His managers or stewards. The Bible says God assigned to mankind responsibility to overseeing His Creation, giving us stewardship authority. “So God created man in his own image…male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature…”” (Genesis 1:27-28).

Work performed for rewards alone is never enough. We set goals and aim for stated objectives, but even when they are achieved, other goals and objectives remain unfulfilled. “My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done, and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was…a chasing after the wind” (Ecclesiastes 2:10-11). “For riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations” (Proverbs 27:24).

Work is one way of honoring and serving God. As we recognize work as part of our divine calling, we also are assured that by doing it faithfully and with excellence, we will earn an eternal reward from God, the Worker who made work part of being “in His image.” “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Colossians 3:23-24).

© 2015. Robert J. Tamasy is vice president of communications for Leaders Legacy, Inc., a non-profit based in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A.