The Value of Work
Several weeks ago, I told you about our visit to the Smoky Mountains with friends and showed you a couple of photos from our stop at Mingus Mill, constructed in 1886.
Every view was captivating. First, we marveled at the bubbling, sun-dappled water of Mingus Creek . . .
. . . as we crossed over the wooden footbridge between the parking lot and the mill.
I was mesmerized as soon as I saw the old millhouse in the afternoon sunshine.
I stooped to walk under the mill between the wooden and stone supports . . .
. . . toward the water cascading down . . .
. . . from the elevated flume which carries water to the mill.
We walked beside the sluice . . .
. . . to the sluice gate that lets water flow from upstream on Mingus Creek.
I was fascinated by the workmanship from the sluice gate, along the sluice, along the flume, and on to the mill. The workmanship of the mill itself was inspiring, as well.
We enjoyed meeting the miller who works at the mill in the summer, . . .
. . . grinding grains as his grandfather did a century ago.
He showed us this photo of his family.
I enjoyed family memories at the mill myself. My grandfather had a scale very much like this one. Daddy Leland’s scale was in his country store.
As always, I enjoyed the beauties of God’s creation that were all around —
even in the reflection of the mill’s upper story window below the initials of Scion Thomas Early, the mill’s builder.
One relatively brief visit to Mingus Mill brought many blessings:
- Seeing a grandson honor his grandfather
- Seeing the work of skilled craftsmen
- Seeing the handiwork of God in the mill’s materials, the creek, and the vegetation.
A few months ago, our then-three-year-old grandson told me that when he grows up, he wants to be a worker man. What a great goal.
Whatever you do, do your work heartily,
as for the Lord rather than for men,
knowing that from the Lord
you will receive the reward of the inheritance.
It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.
Colossians 3:23-24
Do you see a man skilled in his work?
He will stand before kings;
He will not stand before obscure men.
Proverbs 22:29
But as for me, the nearness of God is my good;
I have made the Lord God my refuge,
That I may tell of all Your works.
Psalm 73:28