A LinkedIn study found that in December 2023, forty-six percent of job applications were submitted to ten percent of all job postings on the site. What was in such demand? Those ten percent were remote positions.

The study concluded that employees love the flexibility intrinsic to remote work. Without a commute, they get back time in their days and gas money in their pockets. They can keep up with chores and save on childcare costs (as long as they stay close enough to their laptops to respond to those urgent emails).

Sure, the perks of remote work are great, but a forty-six percent demand for a tenth of the jobs seems like an outsized priority on flexibility. It says that we want to fit our working hours around our lifestyles. Working from home is a way to make work work for us. 

Forty-six percent of job seekers see work as ancillary to their other obligations and preferred activities. Is there anything wrong with this perspective or desiring remote work in general?

Now That We Can

Let’s first talk about the undeniable benefits that virtual work has provided: increased family time, decreased overhead costs, and new opportunities for homebound job seekers. However, working from home has become possible and provided these benefits only recently because of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Although the world came to a standstill during that time, businesses had to keep going. They had to find ways to continue production, provide services, and stay in the black. Unfortunately, some didn’t. Certain businesses cropped up because of the unique circumstances. Others, however, discovered strategic ways to operate that accommodated society’s new normal of virtual work.

It is a testament to human innovation—which itself is a testimony of God’s gift to his creation—that many individuals had the possibility of working remotely then. Employers found a creative solution to a challenging problem that seemed like a win-win for everyone–employees got their work done, on their terms; and employers got results for their businesses. The same new rules have continued to apply today across many job sectors, positively affecting both employers and employees. 

So, for some, remote work has clearly been a net positive; but for many, it is simply not possible.

Doesn’t Mean Everyone Can 

The reality is that no industry can operate entirely from home offices. It is by the sacrifice of people manning the frontlines that others have the freedom to work in their pajamas (or other casual attire). The healthcare industry is just one example. Though there are now virtual ways to visit your doctor, a nurse will never start an IV over Zoom.

Also, post-pandemic, many people are now going back to the office. In an interview with Forbes, LinkedIn’s Global Vice President Josh Graff stated how he “suspect[s] that challenging economic conditions have prompted employers…to minimize disruption wherever they can, and [so] they’re reverting to what they know [which is] office-based work.”

Many people had no choice but to work from home (if they were still employed) as a result of the ongoing quarantines and lockdowns implemented during the height of the pandemic. Since the emergency has passed, many employers now want a return to normalcy through traditional, in-office working environments.

So, if remote work is not an option for our position or if our company calls us back to the office, how should we be found working? What should our heart attitude be when the flexible schedule is made stringent?

Working Hard or Hardly Working

That playful line, “You working hard or hardly working?” is right to be asked of the remote employee. The Christian employee must be found working hard, as unto the Lord (Col. 3:22-25 CSB). Ultimately, it is a question of stewardship: What are we doing for the Kingdom of God with the time and money we are given, whether at our office or from our home? 

Working remotely is a vocational breakthrough that has recalibrated the work-life balance for many. However, it is important to remember that the flexibility to attend to house and family duties while on the clock was always a gift and never a right. To seek it first above other things ignores the rarity that it is in the workforce, potentially placing one’s convenience above their calling.