優先順序和委身
By Rick Boxx
一個美國的億萬富翁企業家－馬克·庫班◎註1他在自己投資的節目「創智贏家Shark Tank(美國真人秀)◎註2」評論另一個企業家時，提到自己生命最重要的事情就是全人奉獻給公司。
庫班指出當他成立公司的時候，他七年沒有放過假。庫班很驕傲說，當時他的女友問他如果只能選擇一個，他會選誰，他說當然選公司。
對很多人來說，委身工作是很平常的一件事情。他們把為工作狂當成自己的信條，而不是錯誤和不平衡的人生順序。即使有週末或是假期，他們還是每天不停的上班，還為此感到驕傲。在某些文化裡面，對工作的委身甚至是沉溺是不尋常的，在某些地方放好幾個星期的假期，都是很平常的事情。但是現在在西方社會裡面，完全不保留的獻身工作已經被當成一種榮譽勳章。
這不是要批評犧牲個人時間和精力爭取確實利潤的企業家。而是經過一段時間辛苦的工作之後，即使是老闆也需要好好的休息。傳道書第三章告訴我們:「凡事都有定期， 天下萬務都有定時。 …栽種有時，拔出所栽種的也有時；…； 拆毀有時，建造有時；拋擲石頭有時，堆聚石頭有時。」
工作是生活很重要的一部分，但是工作不是你生活的全部。「除了我以外，你不可有別的神。「不可為自己雕刻偶像，也不可做甚麼形像彷彿上天、下地，和地底下、水中的 百物。(出埃及記20章3-4節)工作和生意也可能成為崇拜的偶像之一。
聖經提到「全人」，認為人是多面向的，也是由許多人際關係網絡所組成的，所以生活必須要有優先次序，才能照顧到不同的層面。在馬太福音裡面，耶穌回答一個律法師關於律法上的誡命，哪一條是最大的呢？耶穌回答說：「你要盡心、盡性、盡意愛主－你的上帝。」(馬太福音22章37節) 。然後他告訴我們要注重其他的關係特別是婚姻和家庭。「其次也相倣，就是要愛人如己。」(馬太福音22章39節)
的確，工作是我們每天生活當中非常重要的一部分。我們需要工作來賺取生活所需的費用，工作也會帶給我們成就感和滿足感。但是聖經勸告我們要擴寬生活的眼界。在路加福音9章24-25節，耶穌教導我們：「因為，凡要救自己生命( – 生命：或譯靈魂；下同)的，必喪掉生命；凡為我喪掉生命的，必救了生命。人若賺得全世界，卻喪了自己，賠上自己，有甚麼益處呢？」
無疑的，庫班先生是一個非常成功的企業領導人，但是他付出昂貴的代價。很多人追求工作上的成功，把工作當成自己的神。但是神告訴我們更好的優先順序－神、家庭，然後才是工作。
◎註1馬克·庫班是現任美國職業籃球聯賽(NBA)達拉斯小牛隊的擁有者。關於他的生平可以參閱維基百科的介紹。
https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%A9%AC%E5%85%8B%C2%B7%E5%BA%93%E7%8F%AD
◎註2創智贏家Shark Tank(美國真人秀)是一部美國競賽類節目，於2009年8月起在美國廣播公司播出。
省思／討論題目
當知名的企業家告訴你，生意或工作應該放在生活的第一位時，你的想法如何？ 如果工作不是我們生活最重要的，那麼你認為當時間和精力都有限的時候，要如何維持一個平衡的生活？ 你認為工作也可能變成一種神、一種被崇拜的偶像嗎？分享你的看法。 在你的職場生活和個人生活中，優先順序為何？分享你維持平衡生活的秘訣。備註：如果你手上有聖經，想知道關於這個主題更多的經節，請參考：詩篇127篇2節；馬太福音 6章19-24節；以弗所書2章10節；歌羅西書3章17、23節；提摩太後書 3章16-17節
PRIORITIES AND PERSONAL COMMITMENT
By Rick Boxx
Mark Cuban, an American billionaire entrepreneur and one of the investors on the TV reality show, "Shark Tank," revealed his personal priorities when he criticized one of the entrepreneurs making a presentation to the experts, collectively known as the "Sharks." Cuban said he wanted the entrepreneur’s commitment to his business to exceed everything else in his life.
Cuban pointed out when he built his first business, he went without a vacation for seven years! He also pointed to a time when his girlfriend told him he needed to choose her or the business. Cuban bragged that he chose the business.
An all-out commitment to work does not seem unusual to many people. They consider being a “workaholic” a virtue, not an indictment of misplaced or unbalanced priorities. They take pride in not missing a day of work, as well as foregoing days or weeks of vacation, even when they are rightfully entitled to them. In some cultures such devotion to work, perhaps even an obsession with it, is unheard of; midday siestas, even several-week holidays are common in some parts of the world. But in some Western societies an all-out, unreserved dedication to work is displayed like a badge of honor.
This is not to disparage people starting a business who for a period of time must sacrifice time and energy to ensure the new venture is firmly established. But after that, a time should come when the business owner or worker takes a well-deserved break from his or her labors. As Ecclesiastes 3 tells us, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven…a time to plant and a time to uproot…a time to tear down and a time to build…a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them….”
Work is a part of life, a very important part, but work is not life. When God declared, “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath…” (Exodus 20:3-4), I am certain that He was including work and one”s business, because they also can become objects of worship.
The Bible speaks to the “whole person,” viewing us as multi-faceted, relationship-oriented individuals that need to maintain priorities in proper order. When Jesus responded to a question, stating, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind” (Matthew 22:37), He was exhorting us to make God our foremost priority. Next He instructed that relationships – marriage and family in particular – are to hold the next level of importance: “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39).
Without question, work is a very significant element in our daily lives. Through it we earn the provisions for our daily needs, and what we do vocationally can give us much satisfaction and fulfillment. However, the Bible exhorts us to maintain a broader view of our lives. In Luke 9:24-5 Jesus taught, "For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?"
Mr. Cuban, without question, has proved to be an extremely successful business leader and entrepreneur. But at what cost? Many in the business world presume success requires putting the business above all else. The Scriptures tell us God has a better plan: God, family, and then work.
Copyright 2015, Integrity Resource Center, Inc. Adapted with permission from "Integrity Moments with Rick Boxx," a commentary on issues of integrity in the workplace from a Christian perspective.
Reflection/Discussion Questions
What do you think of the famous entrepreneur”s recommendation to make our commitment to business or work greater than anything else in our life? Explain your answer. If we are not to make devotion to our work paramount in our lives, how do you think we can maintain a proper balance – especially when demands on our time and energy in the workplace become great? Do you agree with the idea that work in itself can become a kind of god, an object of worship, or an idol? Why or why not? How would you describe your priorities in life, both professionally and personally? Do you have a particular approach or strategy for ensuring those priorities stay in the right order?NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more about this subject, consider the following passages: Psalm 127:2, Matthew 6:19-24; Ephesians 2:10; Colossians 3:17,23; 2 Timothy 3:16-17
