Work is not, primarily, a thing one does to live, but the thing one lives to do. (Dorothy Sayers, 20th century English writer)
Sayers’ comment may seem trite to some, but it strikes at the very purpose of human life. When God created man and woman, he gave them a job to do—not only for His good purposes but for their own satisfaction and well being. “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it (Genesis 2:15).
You should mind your own business and work with your hands, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody (1 Thessalonians 4:11-12).