Program Summary
In this special Labor Day edition of Mark & Friends, Mark Burns combines Scripture, music, encouragement, and a few timely ministry updates to reflect on work as a gift from God. Beginning with Psalm 90:17 - asking God to establish the work of our hands - Mark reminds listeners that being alive means God still has plans and purposes for their lives, even when circumstances are confusing or difficult. The program moves through Genesis and the Sabbath, 1 Timothy's call to labor with hope in the living God, Jesus' warning not to work merely for what perishes, Colossians 3's command to work wholeheartedly for the Lord, 1 Corinthians 15's assurance that labor in the Lord is not in vain, and Revelation's promise of final rest. Along the way, Mark encourages listeners to recognize both labor and rest as gifts, to trust that God is still working, and to see everyday work as an opportunity to serve Jesus and sow Gospel seed.
Key Takeaways
- Work is part of God's good design, but so is rest; Genesis presents both meaningful labor and a holy rhythm of Sabbath.
- Psalm 90:17 turns work into prayer: I can ask God to place His favor on what I do and establish the work of my hands.
- Being alive today means there is still purpose in front of me, even when trials, detours, or confusion make that purpose hard to see.
- God is often working behind the scenes through ordinary people at the right place and the right time.
- Labor should not be aimed only at temporary things; Jesus directs attention toward what endures to eternal life.
- Colossians 3 reframes ordinary work: whatever I do can be done wholeheartedly as service to the Lord.
- God's work in me is ongoing; seasons of struggle do not mean He has abandoned what He began.
- The harvest belongs to God, but believers are still called to plant, sow, serve, invite, and faithfully do their part.
- 1 Corinthians 15:58 gives lasting significance to kingdom work: labor in the Lord is never wasted.
- Revelation reminds believers that earthly labor is temporary and that final rest with the Lord is certain.
Scripture References
- Psalm 90:17
- Genesis 2:1-3
- Exodus 20:8-9
- 1 Timothy 4:9-10
- John 6:27
- Philippians 1:6
- Colossians 3:23-24
- Matthew 9:37-38
- 1 Corinthians 15:58
- Revelation 14:13
Quote of the Day
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord and not for men.” - Colossians 3:23
Broadcast Notes
Mark opens this Labor Day program with Psalm 90:17 and encourages listeners to invite God into the day, whether they are resting or working. He also asks for prayer regarding several radio engineering challenges: Jacksonville 93.5 FM and White Hall 88.3 FM were off the air because of a transmitter problem, KMDY 90.9 FM had recently been restored through the timely help of Stan Clayton, and an air-conditioning issue at WDKR 107.3 FM had received prompt attention. Mark sees those moments as reminders that God often places the right people in the right places at the right time. The remainder of the program is a Labor Day collection of Scripture and music. Genesis 2 and Exodus 20 frame work alongside Sabbath rest. First Timothy 4 points to laboring with hope in the living God, while John 6 redirects work toward what has eternal value. Colossians 3:23-24 becomes a central Labor Day text: ordinary work can be done wholeheartedly for the Lord. A song about sowing and harvest leads naturally to the Gospel task of planting seed while trusting God for growth. First Corinthians 15:58 assures listeners that labor in the Lord is not in vain, and Revelation 14:13 closes the biblical arc with the promise that those who die in the Lord will rest from their labor and that their deeds follow them.
❤️ Practical Applications
- Begin my workday by praying Psalm 90:17 and specifically asking God to establish the work of my hands.
- Treat rest as part of God's design rather than as laziness, and make room for healthy Sabbath rhythms.
- Choose one ordinary task I normally view as merely a chore and deliberately do it as service to Jesus.
- Ask whether my current work is consuming all my attention with temporary concerns or also making room for what has eternal value.
- Thank God for one person He has placed at the right place and right time to help me or my family.
- If work is frustrating or uncertain, remember that God's purpose is not limited by the detours I can see.
- Look for one opportunity this week to sow Gospel seed through encouragement, invitation, testimony, generosity, or prayer.
- Refuse to measure the value of kingdom work only by immediate visible results; trust God to bring growth in His time.
- Encourage someone whose work feels unnoticed by reminding them that labor done for the Lord is not in vain.
- End one day this week by thanking God both for the ability to work and for His promise of ultimate rest.
Today's Challenge
For the next five workdays, begin with Psalm 90:17: 'May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us.' Then choose one ordinary responsibility and consciously offer it to Jesus before you begin. At the end of the day, write one sentence answering: How did viewing my work as service to the Lord change the way I approached it?
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for the gift of work and for the gift of rest. May Your favor rest upon me, and establish the work of my hands. When my plans are interrupted, my responsibilities feel heavy, or the road ahead is unclear, remind me that You are still working and that my life still has purpose in Your hands. Teach me to work wholeheartedly for You rather than merely for recognition, money, approval, or accomplishment. Help me value what lasts for eternity and use the opportunities You give me to sow seeds of truth, encouragement, kindness, and the good news of Jesus. Give me wisdom to labor faithfully and humility to rest when rest is needed. When I cannot see results, help me remember that my labor in You is not in vain. Continue the good work You have begun in me, and let my work, my rest, my words, and my life bring glory to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.
About Today's Speaker
Today's program is a special Labor Day Scripture-and-music edition presented by Mark Burns, reflecting on work, rest, purpose, perseverance, and serving Jesus in everyday life.
Featured on Mark & Friends - Listen anytime under the Mark & Friends tab at GreatNewsRadio.org or WLUJ.org.
About Today's Host
Mark Burns is General Manager of the WLUJ Family of Stations and Great News Radio Network and host of Mark & Friends. For decades, Mark has been involved in Christian radio and ministry, with a heart for helping listeners know Jesus and grow deeper in God's Word. Through Mark & Friends, he brings pastors, ministry leaders, teachers, missionaries, authors, and everyday believers around the microphone for biblical teaching, testimony, conversation, and encouragement. His desire is that each program help listeners learn, grow, and faithfully live out their relationship with Jesus.
Proofread Broadcast Transcript
We're glad you're here, we're glad you're here,
Fellowship is sweeter, knowing you're near.
It's so good to see you, we hope that it's clear,
Everyone loves you, we're glad you're here.
We're glad you're here. We're glad you're here. Fellowship is sweeter, knowing you're near.
It's so good to see you. We hope that it's clear. Everyone loves you.
We're glad you're here. Reading from Psalm 90, verse 17, May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us. Establish the work of our hands for us.
Yes, establish the work of our hands. Oh, magnify the Lord with me. Let us exalt his name together.
It is Monday. It's Labor Day, which hopefully means for many of you a day off or a day of relaxation or quite possibly a diversion from your typical routine. So I hope and trust you'll acknowledge God as a good giver of this day for you because you're alive, which means he has plans and purposes for your life.
Yeah, I know it's not always clear, oftentimes hard to understand because of circumstances or trials or tribulations, or you felt you were led in one direction and you're getting derailed, creating confusion, maybe even fear. But we serve a great God and he delights in you. He does care for you, and he will provide and make a way if you draw close to him.
So that would probably be the best thing you could do on this Labor Day. Even if you have to work, pray up his involvement in your day and see what happens. May I also ask you to pray up some radio issues we're having with our Jacksonville 93.5 FM, currently off the air.
We have the transmitter being driven to Ohio tomorrow after the holiday, but the Jacksonville station 93.5 feeds our White Hall station 88.3 FM, so both are off the air until we can get a replacement transmitter. Problem being, the people in Jacksonville and White Hall can't get the frequency, so we'll most likely not hear this message. Also, it seems like a perfect storm.
The other day we learned KMDY 90.9 FM, our Keokuk, Iowa station, where the tower's in Nauvoo, Illinois. Well, thank you, God, Stan Clayton, our helper there from Macomb, just happened to be near the tower site, was able to flip a couple switches, and we got that back on the air. And then yesterday, while seated in church, I learned that the air conditioning wasn't working at WDKR 107.3 FM.
We call it our Decatur, central Illinois frequency, as it's our station with the most coverage. Well, the air conditioning shut down. Thank you, God, again.
I happened to have a person that was at the tower, did some resetting, checked out some things, and I think it's working. I'll be checking back on that shortly. But it seems God has put some of the right people at the right places at the right time.
Thank you for that. And we always appreciate your prayers, trying to keep these 21 stations on the air to the glory of God. Well, today I'm going to share some past Labor Day scriptures and songs that I'd put together for such a program as Labor Day.
And I'm thinking oftentimes during the holidays we're often so busy, either traveling or trying to fit in the things we can't do during the week or during a typical week, we kind of miss out on the holiday. Sometimes that even happens during Christmastime. We're so busy with preparation and parties and gift-giving and such that you lose the real sense of the holiday.
So today, maybe as you're settling into this week, may you find special meaning through the songs focusing on labor and how it truly is a gift from God. Reading from Genesis 2, verses 1-3, Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing.
So on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. Here's Steve Ragsdale, All your works are wonderful.
MUSIC: Steve Ragsdale - “All Your Works Are Wonderful”
God's works are wonderful, as are you, created in His image. And as much as we enjoy laboring six days a week, God has made that seventh day a Sabbath.
Exodus 20, 8 and 9. Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. Here's the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, God is Working.
MUSIC: Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir - “God Is Working”
Yep, God is working, working to draw you close to Himself.
Reading from 1 Timothy 4, 9-10, this is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. And for this we labor and strive, that we have put our hope in the living God who is the Savior of all men and especially of those who believe. And here's verse 27 of John chapter 6. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.
On Him God the Father has placed His seal of approval. Here's Steve Green, “He Who Began a Good Work.”
MUSIC: Steve Green - “He Who Began a Good Work in You”
Listening friend, thanks for tuning in on this Labor Day.
And hopefully as you draw near to God today, He who began a good work in you will continue to bring it to completion. Allow Him to draw close to you as you draw close to Him. Here's one of my favorite verses and I have a fun song that'll follow.
It's out of Colossians chapter 3, 23 and 24. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord and not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.
Here's Dennis Boling, “Workers Are Few.” A great message and a heartfelt song.
MUSIC: Dennis Boling - “Workers Are Few”
Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you.
Always give yourself fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. 1 Corinthians 15:58. Here's the West Coast Mennonite Chamber Choir, “Working With Joy.”
MUSIC: West Coast Mennonite Chamber Choir - “Working With Joy”
Was there some tapping and hand clapping to that song? I just love it.
That was the West Coast Mennonite Chamber Choir. I'm going to close out with this reading from Revelation 14, verse 13, with a fun, upbeat song. And yet, after you hear this Revelation passage, you'll see how truthful and powerful the words of Revelation are captured in the song by the cathedrals.
Revelation 14, verse 13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, Write, Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. Yes, says the Spirit. They will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.
Here's The Cathedrals, “Hard Times Will Soon Be Over.”
MUSIC: The Cathedrals - “Hard Times Will Soon Be Over”
That was The Cathedrals, “Hard Times Will Soon Be Over.” Well happy Labor Day I hope you'll be able to spend some quality time With friends or family members And if you feel alone Remember you're never alone God's with you God is accessible He loves you, He cares And He'll make this a special Labor Day for you If you missed a portion of today's broadcast And want to hear that music and scriptures Stop by GreatNewsRadio.org Or WLUJ.org And click on the Mark & Friends tab Thanks for listening Thanks for being a part of our radio listening family This is Mark Burns With the Ministry of Great News Media God bless you And have a great day and night