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Christian Network

Throughout history the Church has been influenced by the cultures it has been co-existent with. In some cases this influence has been healthy, in some cases not. Human societies have always consisted of a mixed bag of the good and the bad. American society at the beginning of the 21^st Century is no exception.

Part of the core of ‘the American Dream’ today is the quest to be upwardly mobile materially. The United States has a strong work ethic which has helped us to become an economic superpower. People here work hard to gain an affluence undreamed of by most of the world. Many succeed. The private enterprise system seems to work very well and its triumph over competing ideologies reinforces the belief that the ‘business of America is business’. The superiority of the system is affirmed by most Americans.

But there is a cost.

In order to gain this affluence the typical worker is putting in far more working time today. The 40 hour workweek has become, during the past twenty years, the 60 hour work week. This is especially true in what we call ‘Corporate America’. Big business asks its employees to sacrifice more and more time in the pursuit of more and more productivity. Nationally a large percentage of these workers, perhaps 30% percent, are Evangelicals. We have bought into the workaholism of the 2003 version of the American Dream. This is problematic to say the least.

Christians in this country increasingly have less time to devote to the kind of life ministry modeled in the New Testament. There is less time being devoted today to everything from church service to intentional efforts to invest in the kinds of relationships that build community. When your work and your commute take up 10 to 12 hours a day you do not have much time or energy left. The job becomes the focus of life. Investing in eternal things takes a back seat.

The irony of all this is that many caught up in the corporate lifestyle are too exhausted to even enjoy the fruits of their labor. They make good money but the cost, among other things, is lost leisure time. What we have here in the U.S. is a Protestant work ethic that has gone out of control. We are not lazy, it’s true, but maybe a little more laziness would be a good thing.

What seems to be missing is balance. Our lives are weighted too heavily towards getting ahead in the working world. Perhaps the lower standard of living that might result from quitting corporations that demand our souls would be worth it. Trade the new BMW in for a used Chevy, buy a smaller house, forego the annual vacation in the Caribbean; all these things are not as important as forging real relationships with God and with human beings.

American born missionaries to places like Africa and South America often do not enjoy their furloughs home. They have grown use to the slower rhythm of life in other countries. What they see upon arrival back in the land of their birth is a manic society that has no time for the more important things in life. These missionaries have learned that relationships are more highly regarded elsewhere than hyper-affluence. Perhaps Christians here need to re-evaluate the American Dream in light of what really matters.