The Art of Grave Digging

Lo, I die: in my grave which I have digged for me in the land of Canaan, there shalt thou bury me. —Genesis 50:5

Earlier this week I enjoyed an interesting conversation with the driver of the Kitsap Airporter. While en route to SeaTac airport I asked the driver, “I bet you meet a lot of interesting people driving this shuttle. Who was the most interesting person you ever met?” He said, “A professional gravedigger from Scotland.” I never met a gravedigger before so I asked the driver to tell me about him.

Upon meeting this gravedigger, the shuttle driver said, “You must know a lot about backhoes in your line of work.”

“Oh no. Backhoes cannot be used in the old cemeteries in Scotland,” the gravedigger answered, “The graves are too close together and tombstones get in the way of machinery. Backhoes could never dig a grave to our precise specifications. I dig graves by hand using a shade, shovel, a template, and a measuring stick. Grave-digging is an art and a very meticulous and specialized task. We take a lot of pride in digging a grave. After all, a grave is the final resting place of a person’s remains.”

I was intrigued to learn how professional grave-diggers consider their career as an honorable and sacred work. I’m reminded of the valiant men of Jabesh-gilead who hazarded their lives to give bodies of Saul and Jonathan a decent burial (1 Sam. 31:11-13).

I believe every Christian should also consider what they do as a sacred work. As Paul said, “Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord” (Col. 3:23). May each of us be as passionate and conscientious in our service for God as this gravedigger was towards his work.