Blessings to you all,
The Bible tells us that no matter what the assignment before us, we should do it as if we are doing it for the Lord Himself,....that we are to use our skill and put our heart and mind into the task. God wants the best effort from us in every area.
"Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men." Col 3:23
"Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father." Col 3:17
Whether, then, you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." I Cor 10:31
Too many people today tend to over-spiritualize these verses, reducing the broad term "everything" to just those things "spiritual" but that is not what these verses say.
Our Founding Fathers understood the broad scope of these passages and applied the messages to all endeavors including politics, education, law, entertainment, employment, and even dictionaries! The story of Founding Father Noah Webster's creation of his famous dictionary is an excellent illustration of how they infused the "do the absolute best I can, and do it for God" mentality in every thing they did.
Webster was one of the nation's top educators, providing the first American textbooks for classrooms. He wrote books on spelling, grammar, literature, agriculture, banking, history, government, manners, and medicine, in addition to his famous dictionary. In which he researched and traveled in order to find and understand origins and uses of words so as to properly define them. His story is fascinating and too long to share here. He used Scripture verses to illustrate the uses of words he was defining, for example: The word man was defined: "And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and let them have dominion." Genesis 1
Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble." Job 14 and "It is written, man shall not live by bread alone." Matt 4:4
After defining the word heart, his examples were:
"The heart is deceitful above all things" Jeremiah 17:9. "We read of an honest and good heart in Luke 8:15, of an evil heart of unbelief in Hebrews 3:12, a willing heart in Exodus 35:5, 22, a heavy heart in Proverbs 25:20, a sorrowful heart in Nehemiah 2:2, a hard heart, in Exodus 7:14, a pure heart in Matt 5:8." And so on.......Webster was so committed to doing everything for the Lord, including his massive dictionary that in the preface that that famous work, he openly dedicated it to God:
"To that great and benevolent Being, Who during the preparation of this work has sustained a feeble constitution (body) amidst obstacles and toils, disappointments, infirmities and depression; Who has borne me and my manuscripts in safety across the Atlantic and given me strength and resolution to bring this work to a close, I would present the tribute of my most grateful acknowledgements. And if the talent which He has entrusted to my care has not been put to the most profitable use in His service, I hope it has not been "kept laid up in a napkin" (Luke19:20) and that any misapplication of it may be graciously forgiven." He also announced, "I present this to my fellow citizens not with frigid indifference but with my ardent wishes for their improvement and happiness and.....the moral and religious elevation of character, and the glory, of my country."
Since it original publication in 1828, Webster's dictionary has undergone extensive censorship to remove its Christian nature; and although the most popular dictionary in America continues to bear his name, it no longer reflects the spirit of the original. Fortunately, reprints and online copies are still available and accessible for use today and highly recommended for those who wish to retain and promote a Biblical view of the English language.
The Bible tells us that no matter what the assignment before us, we should do it as if we are doing it for the Lord Himself,....that we are to use our skill and put our heart and mind into the task. God wants the best effort from us in every area.
"Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men." Col 3:23
"Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father." Col 3:17
Whether, then, you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." I Cor 10:31
Too many people today tend to over-spiritualize these verses, reducing the broad term "everything" to just those things "spiritual" but that is not what these verses say.
Our Founding Fathers understood the broad scope of these passages and applied the messages to all endeavors including politics, education, law, entertainment, employment, and even dictionaries! The story of Founding Father Noah Webster's creation of his famous dictionary is an excellent illustration of how they infused the "do the absolute best I can, and do it for God" mentality in every thing they did.
Webster was one of the nation's top educators, providing the first American textbooks for classrooms. He wrote books on spelling, grammar, literature, agriculture, banking, history, government, manners, and medicine, in addition to his famous dictionary. In which he researched and traveled in order to find and understand origins and uses of words so as to properly define them. His story is fascinating and too long to share here. He used Scripture verses to illustrate the uses of words he was defining, for example: The word man was defined: "And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and let them have dominion." Genesis 1
Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble." Job 14 and "It is written, man shall not live by bread alone." Matt 4:4
After defining the word heart, his examples were:
"The heart is deceitful above all things" Jeremiah 17:9. "We read of an honest and good heart in Luke 8:15, of an evil heart of unbelief in Hebrews 3:12, a willing heart in Exodus 35:5, 22, a heavy heart in Proverbs 25:20, a sorrowful heart in Nehemiah 2:2, a hard heart, in Exodus 7:14, a pure heart in Matt 5:8." And so on.......Webster was so committed to doing everything for the Lord, including his massive dictionary that in the preface that that famous work, he openly dedicated it to God:
"To that great and benevolent Being, Who during the preparation of this work has sustained a feeble constitution (body) amidst obstacles and toils, disappointments, infirmities and depression; Who has borne me and my manuscripts in safety across the Atlantic and given me strength and resolution to bring this work to a close, I would present the tribute of my most grateful acknowledgements. And if the talent which He has entrusted to my care has not been put to the most profitable use in His service, I hope it has not been "kept laid up in a napkin" (Luke19:20) and that any misapplication of it may be graciously forgiven." He also announced, "I present this to my fellow citizens not with frigid indifference but with my ardent wishes for their improvement and happiness and.....the moral and religious elevation of character, and the glory, of my country."
Since it original publication in 1828, Webster's dictionary has undergone extensive censorship to remove its Christian nature; and although the most popular dictionary in America continues to bear his name, it no longer reflects the spirit of the original. Fortunately, reprints and online copies are still available and accessible for use today and highly recommended for those who wish to retain and promote a Biblical view of the English language.
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