Work is weighing on me

Work can give dignity and bread — and it can also exhaust, humiliate or disappear. In Nazareth Jesus was known as the carpenter, and he called his first disciples in the middle of their work, after a night in which they had caught nothing.

And Simon answering said to him: Master, we have labored all the night, and have taken nothing: but at thy word I will let down the net.
Luke 5:5 · Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition

Awaiting theological review

What Jesus teaches

Direct
Summary of Luke 10:7
He said that the labourer is worthy of his hire.
Direct
Summary of Matthew 6:33
He told his disciples to seek first the kingdom of God, and that the rest would be added.
Direct
Summary of Matthew 11:28
He invited the weary: “Come to me, all you that labour, and are burdened, and I will refresh you.”

What Christian tradition learns from this

Interpretation

In Genesis God places the man in the garden to till it and keep it before any fall: work is part of human dignity, not only a burden.Genesis 2:15

What Jesus did

A night with empty nets
Luke 5:1–11
Direct
What Jesus experienced
Fishermen washing their nets after a whole night of work with nothing to show for it.
What Jesus did
He asked for their boat, then told Simon to go out again and let down the nets — and they caught so many fish that the nets were breaking.
What Jesus said
“Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.”
Luke 5:4 · Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
The carpenter
Mark 6:1–6
Direct
What Jesus experienced
His home town, unable to see more in him than his trade and his family.
What Jesus did
He healed a few sick people there and wondered at their unbelief, and went on teaching in the villages around.
Martha, busy about much serving
Luke 10:38–42
Direct
What Jesus experienced
Martha, overloaded with serving and upset that she had been left to do it alone.
What Jesus did
He told her gently that she was anxious about many things, and that her sister had chosen the better part.

What Scripture doesn’t tell us

If you are harassed, exploited or put in danger at work, speak to someone you trust, a trade union or the authorities. Burnout and depression are real illnesses: talk to a doctor.

Someone who walked this road

Saint JosephScripture
A craftsman who provided for his family with his hands; Jesus was known as the carpenter's son (Matthew 13:55).
Explore connections →
PeterScripture
Jesus met him in his empty boat after a night of failed work, and asked him to try again (Luke 5:4–5).
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Pray

Lord Jesus, you worked with your hands in Nazareth and you met Peter in his empty boat. Bless my work today. Where it is heavy, give me strength; where it seems useless, give me hope; and let me hear your word to try again. Amen.

Written for cento53 as a simple personal prayer — not a liturgical text.