“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work….” Exodus 20:8-10 NKJV

I’ve worked in academic libraries for 37 years: 19 at Indiana University, 12 at Point Loma Nazarene University, and 6 at Lenoir-Rhyne University. All three institutions had some kind of faculty status for librarians, and all three allowed for promotion in rank, service on faculty committees, and other faculty responsibilities and benefits. For the most part, I think faculty status has been a strong positive for libraries and librarians. With these systems in place, I was promoted several times, received tenure at two different institutions, and served in leadership roles on faculty committees at all three institutions.

^“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 NIV

When we are facing adversity and a spiritual battle, it is easy to blame God and to beg Him to remove us from it. “Why me?”  is something that easily falls from our lips instead of gratitude and worship. We think if we are doing battle, God is picking on us, or just AWOL. Libraries and librarians, as well as Christians, are facing a lot of adversity and uncertainty currently, and many of us are facing them in our personal lives as well.

“She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: ‘You are the God who sees me,’ for she said, ‘I have now seen the One who sees me’” (Genesis 16:13 NIV).

Being a librarian often feels like being invisible. It’s rare that people know exactly what it is we do. Many people believe librarians are two-dimensional beings that exist to shush people or who get to camp behind a reference desk and read whatever they want all day. Sometimes librarianship can feel like a thankless job. No one sees the long hours spent on cataloging, book display creation, or acquisitions.  No one sees the stress of patron-librarian interactions or the frustration of trying to keep library programs afloat. We often feel unseen in our struggles and in our work.

“I have said these things to you that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 ESV

Sometimes our hopes and expectations are dashed; things we would not have chosen happen to us or our loved ones. Sometimes these things are consequences of our own doings. Other times, these uninvited, difficult things, such as changes to or in our jobs, issues with colleagues or patrons, problems in work or family relationships, unanticipated changes in our institutions, or unexpected health issues, seem to just happen.