Ambition...Revisited

As I was thinking about today's post, I looked back at the last year's analytics data. Like many websites, I have software that counts the number of visitors and the pages that they look at. I was just curious regarding what posts were the most popular ones. The introduction that's linked to "about this blog" was easily the most popular. The second most popular posts were "grace" and "ambition."

The ambition post was one that I wrote at the beginning of 2011. As I think about the upcoming year and my goals, it's all too easy to focus on the accolades that I hope come from accomplishing those goals. It's a powerful temptation to think about getting ahead, receiving praise and money for what I plan to do. It's not that God is against success--just see what He did for Joseph. But that success should never be the goal. Our goal should always be to use our talents to honor god through our work.

It was a little disappointing to read the ambition post and know that I struggle with that temptation just as much now as I did on January 5, 2011. Which is why I'm glad the grace post was just as popular. It's critical to remember that God sees my growth as a process, not a one-time event. He knows that I'm going to struggle and fail. And He loves me (and you) anyway.

As I began this year, I made goals for the year just as I always do. But this year, one of my earliest posts on this blog was about grace again. It makes it easier to remember that, when I mess up, God is still there.

Image Building

My wife is in a Bible study, examining the book of Daniel through Beth Moore's Daniel: Lives of Integrity, Words of Prophesy. She pointed something out to me in one of their lessons that is particularly relevant for this blog. We know Daniel 3 as the story of the fiery furnace. But look at the events that led to that miracle. King Nebuchadnezzar built an image of himself (way beyond lifesize). He summoned the officials who reported to him and commanded them to bow to that image. Moore notes that there is a fine line between "an honest attempt to look or do our best" and building an image of ourselves as an "attempt to make impressions that are bigger than we are" (p. 49).

Moore points out that commoners weren't invited; only the well-to-do were to bow down to the king. That's part of the delusion--that great people think you're even greater than they are. It's a mentality that is rampant in our culture. I have reached the pinnacle of success when great people think I'm the best. I admit that I face that temptation as I think about my own career, wanting to impress the people I respect to the point that they praise me.

God wants you to do quality work. That's part of honoring Him. But the point of quality work is to glorify God, not yourself. That's a focus that is very hard to maintain, but it's one way that you demonstrate your distinctiveness and commitment to Christ.

What Are You Sacrificing?

I was reading about Abraham’s sacrificing Isaac a few days ago. Here was a man (Abraham) who had everything a man of his time could want except one thing (a son). God Himself speaks with Abraham and gives him a son. That's got to be a pretty good life, to be able to talk to God and to know that He's giving you what you want most in life. But only a few chapters later, you read about Abraham taking Isaac to a mountain in Moriah to sacrifice his only son. Abraham wasn't the only one who made dire sacrifices for God in the Bible. Hosea married a prostitute. God told Jeremiah not to marry or have any children. Ezekiel was married but was told not to mourn his wife when she died. Talk about sacrificing your family for your work!

The Bible is full of stories about people's sacrificing. That got me thinking, what are we really sacrifcing? Romans instructs us to be living sacrifices, but what does that really mean? For one thing, it means that your time and your money are God's, not your own. It means that you have to be willing to be unpopular or outcast at work, if that's what God requires of you. It almost certainly means that you'll be uncomfortable at times (see the awkwardness post from Monday).

What are you sacrificing for God at work? If you can't answer that question right now, perhaps you should pay attention how you spend your time and energy.

Look for Ways to Be Humbled

One last word on pride from last week's posts. I've mentioned before that my wife and I had a baby at the beginning of this month. In just a little over 3 weeks, he has taught me an important lesson about pride. Before he was born, I'd taken time to read a lot of books on caring for babies. I tried to read things that represented a wide variety of viewpoints and techniques. And now that he's here, I implement a lot of that knowledge when he's crying or when taking care of him in this or that way. And sometimes it works. That's a great feeling, when you try something that's supposed to soothe a screaming baby and it works. It's a huge ego boost to be able to calm our baby. But other times, I go through my list of things to try and nothing seems to help. I think to myself, "wait a minute, I had this down just a few hours ago." My ego boost from the success goes flat faster than you can say "dirty diaper."

Having accomplishments at work is great. And like I've said a number of times, you need to strive to produce quality work. But don't shy away from humbling experiences. They can keep your pride in check and show you how much you depend on others and how much you depend on God.

He Humbled

Philippians 2:5-8

I need to start with a caveat that I probably should have included in Wednesday's post. If it seems like that post on pride or this one on humility makes me look like I've got it all together or that I don't struggle with pride, that is not my intent, nor is it true. I'm writing to myself this week, just as much as I'm writing to any of you.

The opposite of pride is humility or humbleness. Jesus uses the idea of meekness in Matthew 5:5. It means recognizing our place in the universe (i.e., very small). It means recognizing our dependence on God (complete). It means that, while our accomplishments seem great in our own eyes, we worship a God who created the universe (an infinitely greater accomplishment). James says that humility comes from wisdom (3:13). Other passages talk about God giving salvation and grace to the humble (Psalm 149:4 and James 4:6, respectively).

Perhaps the most exemplary model of humility is Jesus Himself. Philippians 2 reminds us how far the Son of God stooped to save us from sin. "Being in very nature God," Jesus was at the very highest height of the universe. Nothing that we can imagine was equal to Him. But, instead of taking pride in that, He "did not consider equality with God something to be grasped." He refused to take pride in His position. Instead, He "made Himself nothing." He humbled Himself as far as He could and "became obedient to death, even death on a cross." In addition to the pain and horror, the cross was particularly humbling because it was a style of execution reserved for the lowest of the low criminals. Jesus went from the infinitely highest place in the universe to the absolute lowest.

Kind of brings everything into perspective in terms of our own pride, doesn't it? The antidote for pride is to remember what you'd be without God. In Him, you move and have your being (Acts 17:28). You would be less than nothing without Him.

It's great to get a promotion or land a major account. And it's fine to celebrate those accomplishments as gifts from God. Just remember where they come from. Remember that nothing is possible without your creator.

Pride Goes Before Destruction

Proverbs 16:18

Pride is an interesting problem for Christians in the workplace. On the one hand, we're told to do quality work. On the other, the Bible warns against pride with verses such as:

"Pride goes before destruction" (Prov. 16:18)
"I hate pride and arrogance" (Prov. 8:13)
"He looks upon the lowly, but the proud, He knows from afar" (Psalm 138:6)
"Do not be proud" (Romans 12:16)
"[Love] is not proud" (1 Cor. 13:4)

And that list is just a small sampling.

Al Pacino, playing Satan in The Devil's Advocate, states that vanity (another word for pride) is his favorite sin. Obviously, the movie is not speaking on behalf of the devil, but pride is certainly one temptation that is particularly dangerous.

One reason that pride can be so dangerous is that it hides our weaknesses, which may be the reason that "pride goes before destruction." We begin to think we're untouchable, and then we don't notice mistakes and other problems that creep up around us.

Another reason that pride is a big problem is that it alienates others. Romans 12:3 says "do not think of yourself more highly than you ought," and the context is that we all need other people. That's true in our Christian walk (which is Paul's reference in the Romans passage), but it's also true at work. There are very few, if any, jobs that you can do without some kind of dependence on other people. In the university classes that I teach, students invariably hate group assignments. However, the lessons of dealing with underperforming group members or with having to coordinate schedules (which are the two most common complaints) are important as students go into jobs where they will have to work with others. Very rarely will your job performance be solely dependent on you, and pride tends to hide the fact that we need other people.

But perhaps the most important reason that the Bible warns against pride is that is such a small step from pride in one's accomplishments to forgetting how much we need God. Pride diminishes God's work in our lives, and how He provides for us in terms of our day-to-day living. Pride in an achievement at work neglects God's help in giving you the skills and knowledge to do the work that you do. And that kind of pride also makes it easier to forget that we are all sinners in need of a Savior, that we are nothing without Jesus.

Where do you struggle with pride? Take a long look at your life, particularly how you think about your work. Identify the areas in which you're more susceptible to pride. Then take those areas to God in prayer.

Apologies

I really liked what Nancy wrote about apologies. This week, I'm planning to post about pride, and that's really related to apologies. I think the reasons why saying a sincere "I'm sorry" is that we don't want to lose face. We're prideful. This week, if you are in the wrong, apologize. We'll talk more about pride on Wednesday and Friday.

Lessons from the First Organization

Genesis 11:1-9

I was reading a book by Myron Rush entitled "Management: A Biblical Approach" last week, and he made a point that had never occurred to me. As far as we know, the first organization in the Bible occurred in the City of Babel as the people were constructing their tower. Sure, there may have been what you might call family businesses before that--farming and herding types of things. And yes, if Noah's sons or neighbors helped him, you could call that an organization. But in terms of explicitly mentioned references to people organizing their labor, the Tower of Babel is the first one in the Bible. A lot of times, we skip over this story on our way from Noah to Abraham, and when we do hear lessons about Babel, it's usually related to pride or to seeking God's will. But Rush explains that there's a lot to learn about running a business in those verses as well.

When you think about it, Babel Construction was an extremely successful company. God didn't say, "well, this isn't going to amount to anything, but let's mess up their language anyway." He said, "nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them." The organization set up by the people of Babel was second to none. What did they have that gave them such potential? Commitment to a goal (verses 3-4), everyone on the same page (verse 6), and effective communication (verses 1, 6). Of course, the thing that ultimately became their downfall was that their goal was not alligned with God. But their potential was tremendous!

There are two points to take away from this story in terms of faith in the workplace. First, as a communication professor, I would be falling down on the job if I didn't point out the importance of good communication. The way God doomed their project was to mess up their communication. He could have brought an earthquake or a hurricane, but instead, he made it difficult for them to talk. Communication is key. Second, and more importantly, you have to be pursuing godly objectives. If your business pursues money above all else, watch out that your tower doesn't fall. James reminds us to keep God at the center of our plans. Proverbs 16:3 explains that we should commit our plans to the Lord, who will make our paths straight. Perhaps even more to the point, unless the Lord is building your house (or business or nonprofit or church), the workers are laboring in vain (Psalm 127:1).

Living Sacrifices

Romans 12:1-2

What does it mean to be a living sacrifice? Think about that for a minute. This passage is a relatively familiar one in many circles today, so there's a good chance that you've read it before. What would it mean for your life if you truly lived this verse out?

I think that we try to live our life in compartments. We have the Sunday compartment, where we go to church and think about God. We have the Monday through Friday, eight to five compartment, where we're focused on work. We have the "school night" compartment where we're focused on helping kids with homework but making sure no one stays up too late. And we have the Saturday compartment as a kind of miscellaneous day. As we live, we act differently in each compartment. Our priorities are different. The way we treat others is different. I think that's only naturaly because each of those represents a different role in our lives: church member, worker, family member, etc. But God expects our whole selves. He doesn't want to be in a compartment. He wants it all. Because of His great mercy, He wants you to be His completely, in every aspect of your life.

Even as I write this, I know there are ways that I can better glorify God at work. Ways that I have let too much of me slip through. Ways that I have conformed to the people around me rather than conformed to God.

When you commit to living for God rather than yourself, something else happens--you are better able to understand God's will for your life. You see, sometimes I think we look at our choices, pick the best option, and then convince ourselves it was God's will. "It was God's will that I accept this promotion." "It was God's will that I leave one job to take a higher paying job with better advancement opportunities." I've blogged before about a preacher I know who talked about how we make a decision and try to "apply the gravy of God's will" to that decision. We know what we want to do, and we convince ourselves that's what God wants for us as well. Paul says that it is only through offering yourself as a sacrifice to God, giving up what you want to focus on Him, that you can know God's will.

Being a sacrifice is uncomfortable. If it feels comfortable, ask yourself if you've given anything up for God. If it's hard to commit to being a sacrifice, just remember how much He sacrificed for you.

Places of Honor

Luke 14: 7-11

I was at a meeting a while back, where a certain group of people who had accomplished something were asked to pose for a picture. Without going into too much detail, I had accomplished something similar, but not in as public a way as the others had. So I held back and chatted with someone while the picture was taken. Later, someone asked, "why weren't you in the picture?" I responded with a paraphrase of the story that is found in Luke 14. Guests at a dinner were arguing over who should get the seats of honor. Jesus suggested that it was wiser to choose a less desirable seat and be asked to move up, rather than choosing a more desirable seat only to be asked to move and let a more honored guest sit there (an embarassment in almost any culture).

For many of us, part of our work is trying to get the "honored" seats. In our minds, we think about which coworkers are more or less deserving than we are. Sometimes, we manuever to ascend that list. There's nothing inherently wrong with that, although you need to show God's love to your coworkers. But be careful about thinking of yourself more highly than you ought. That picture will only be remembered by a few people, none of whom will have any direct effect on me. But in the moment, it sure was nicer to be asked why I wasn't there rather than being told that I didn't belong.

Ambition

I have to confess that, as the new year starts, I struggle with ambition. This is the time of year for goal setting. As I think about what I want to accomplish during 2011, it's very easy to think about the accolades that I want to receive for accomplishing those goals. As a professor, my two biggest responsibilities are teaching and research, so I think about being praised as an excellent teacher or receiving congratulations on a ground-breaking publication. Yes, it's easy for me to shift from reflecting about my goals for the year to seeking approval of others.

Part of what makes ambition a tricky thing is that God wants us to produce quality work. In a college class on faith and art, I had a professor once say that you can't be a good Christian artist (or banker or scientist or teacher or...) without being a good artist. In other words, putting "Christian" before one's vocation doesn't automatically make you good at it. You have to work at your trade. No one wants a mechanic that has scriptures quoted all over the waiting room but can't fix your car.

So desiring to be good at what you do is a perfectly Godly trait. I've said this before, but I think it really comes down to where your focus lies. When you think about your job, what are the things about which you obsess? Is it what a particular boss or coworker thinks about you? Is it getting ahead of him or her? Is it advancing in your career far enough that you have "enough" money (an elusive goal)? Or is it to glorify God? To bring Him honor? To advance His cause? One way to understand yourself in this regard is to look at your thought-life. When you think about or daydream about your job, what comes to mind? Is that what God would want?

As you set goals for this year, be careful about ambition. You cannot serve two masters (Matthew 6:19-24; Luke 16:13). Take this opportunity to choose the right one.

Comparing Paychecks, Expectations, and Contentment

Matthew 20:1-16

I think this is a really interesting story. A landowner hires day laborers to work his vineyard. At the end of the day, he pays everyone the same, regardless of how long they actually worked. I've heard commentators talk about how this refers to those who become Christians at the end of their lives receiving salvation just as much as those who are Christians from childhood. Jesus makes a statement about humility at the end (the first shall be last). But for the purposes of this blog, I'm interested in what the story says about work. Yes, that isn't the focus, the work is just a metaphor. But I don't think Jesus would have used that metaphor if it included false comparisons.

First, see how the landowner paid the workers what was due when it was due. I think that's an important lesson about paying your workers what you owe them.

Second, perhaps more importantly, look at the attitude of the "early workers." These were the people that were hired first, perhaps because they were dilligent in being ready to be hired, perhaps because they looked like the best workers. They worked very hard all day. So naturally, when they saw workers who had not worked as long getting paid for a full day, the early workers thought they'd be getting more. They were very disgruntled to receive the same pay. But wasn't that what they'd agreed to? I think there are times when we agree to something, only to discover that we could have gotten more. Then, we try to pressure the other party to up the ante. This is a problem of comparing ourselves to others and a problem of contentment. We aren't content with what we are given under the original agreement, so we try to get more. Paul says that "godliness with contentment is great gain." Be careful of trying to get everything you can, just because you think you deserve more. Sometimes, it's better just to be content with what you have.

Deny Yourself and Follow Me

Matthew 16:24-26; Mark 8:34-38; Luke 9:23-24

This is another one of those passages that really makes a good "theme" verse for what this blog is all about. "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." What does that really mean in the 21st century? What does it mean at work? It's not language we're really used to in every day conversations. Obviously, this verse applies to every part of our lives. But since this blog is about Christianity in the workplace, let me share some of what I think this verse means regarding work.

I think, first and foremost, it means that we need to resist our human nature toward ambition at any cost. I don't think that's a univeral trait because I've seen people who are not overly driven by ambition, but I think it is a common trait. We want to succeed. We want to be the best. And being the best means that others around us are not the best. Sometimes, our winning means they have to lose. But that's ok, because we have to be the best. There is a sense that any sacrifice is ok if it means that we advance, that we are recognized as "the best" or "among the best" at whatever it is that we do. And so relationships, family, integrity, it all may fall prey to the drive to achieve.

As I've posted before, God wants us to be good at what we do, to use our talents to His glory. We need to do quality work. But we're not supposed to be working to achieve our own glory. We're to do quality work because we're working for God's glory, not our own. So that's really the first part of today's passage--deny yourself, which might mean "deny your drive to accomplish your own glory" at work.

Then second, pick up your cross and follow Christ. Being Chrisitan at work makes you different, makes you stand out from the crowd. Your talk is different. You don't lie or gossip. You respect authority, even when the boss is not looking. Those things may make you the subject of ridicule from your coworkers, who laugh at you for being soft and not cut-throat enough. You may miss out on promotions because you turn the other cheek instead of going for the kill. That's why following Christ means picking up a cross.

It's not the easy road. And contrary to some popular wisdom, it won't win you fortunes and fame. So why do it? First, because look at how much you've been loved. That's enough right there. But if you need more motivation, Jesus gives it two verses later: "What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?" Does your success in your job, at the expense of so many other things, get you anything in the long run? I'm talking about the really long run here. At the end of everything, you won't be taking anything that you've earned with you. It won't matter how many deals you've closed, how much overtime you've logged, or how many people you had to climb over to claw your way to the top. It won't matter whether you had the corner office on the top floor or whether you worked as a clerk in the mail room. The only thing that will matter is Jesus.

He calls to you: "Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Me." What do you say to Him?

Do Not Love the World

1 John 2: 15-17

I don't think there's anything wrong with wanting to be the best at what you do. Colossians 3:23 says "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men." One thing I take from that passage is that I need to be striving for excellence at work. However, there's a difference between striving for excellence because I'm working for the Lord and blind ambition. I'll be honest, sometimes I'm not sure where that line is in my own work. When is it ok to want to be the best at what I do? But one thing I'm sure about--there is a point at which striving to be the best crosses over into worldy ambition. A big part of the difference might be motivation--are you working for recognition from others, for prestige and pride? Again, this is something that, for me (and many others, I'm sure), is a struggle. As you work hard at your job, is there envy or selfishness? I've already blogged about how those are markers of worldly ambition. Are your plans and accomplishments in line with God's plan as far as you can tell? 1 John 2 illustrates just one of the reasons why worldly ambition is dangerous--this world and everything in it is temporary. If you are striving for the prestige of the world and for the accomplishments that the world honors, you are working for something that passes away all too quickly. So as you are working hard, ask yourself what the prize is. Why are you working so hard? And then ask, is that the right prize?

One of my favorite examples of Godly ambition is Joseph. Think about the responsibilities he had in Potiphar's house. Think about how hard he probably worked in prison. And then think about how his job duties in both positions probably paled in comparison to his tasks and second-in-command for all of Egypt. Yet as he worked, you never get the sense that he's blinded by selfishness or vanity. He gets promoted right and left, but through it all, he seems to work for God's glory.

Do Not Boast about Tomorrow

James 4:13-16

I am a big fan of day planners and to do lists. Anyone who knows me knows that I like to have a plan before I do anything. My dayplanner is divided into an elaborate, color-coded system of plans for the year, for the month, for the week, and for the day. In some ways, this passage in James 4 is one of the hardest passages in the whole Bible for me.

James is specifically talking to merchants here, but I think the principle applies to almost every profession. How often do we make plans based on our desires and goals without considering God? I heard a preacher one time take this a step further. He said that we make our own plans and then "apply the gravy of God's will." What he meant was we made up our mind what we wanted to do and then looked for reasons why our plan was God's plan. James is strictly condemning that.

I'm not going to abandon my dayplanner. And I don't think that's even the point. The point of this passage is what priorities underlie the goals and schedules that you make. Think about that. What is driving you as you set goals and fill schedules? Is it ambition? Is it a quest for more stuff or for more influence? Or are you driven by God? Are you making goals based on a relentless desire to worship your Lord? Actually, the scary thing is that you ARE driven by a relentless desire to worship your lord, whether it is God or anything else. These passages emphasize that the "things" that we might be pursuing are very temporary, here today and gone tomorrow. That goes for increased influence or prestige, a bigger home, a fancier title. None of it will last. James is encouraging his readers to plan based on eternity, to plan based on God's plans.

Envy and Selfish Ambition

James 3:14-16

James says that "where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice." Isn't it interesting how much temptation can be reduced to envy and/or to selfish ambition. We want what someone else has so we lie or cheat to get it. We want to be better than a coworker, so we backstab him or her to make sure they know we're the best. What is even more interesting is that James says such things are the opposite of godly wisdom. Godly wisdom, according to James is considerate, submissive, and merciful, among other things. Even knowing that envy and selfish ambition are at odds with God's wisdom, I will be the first to admit that I have bragged about things that I have done to stay on top and to keep others down. I don't think there's a switch to flip to turn those things off. Perhaps it starts with a desire for a quiet life, rather than a desire to be better than everyone else. To that, you might remember that working for the Lord means showing love to everyone around you. It will take incremental steps, probably with a number of backslides, but living life by God's wisdom rather than envy and selfish ambition is important, at work or anywhere else.

Love of Money

1 Timothy 6:6-10

This passage does not relate to work specifically, but it is so related to work issues that I could not pass by it without comment. Paul says "godliness with contentment is great gain." I think contentment is one of the rarest treasures. Look at verse 8--"If we have food and clothing, we are content with that." Verse 10 does not say that money is the root of all evil. It's the love of money, the relentless pursuit of more. Be careful about ambition. If properly focused, it can be a great thing. But if ambition is connected to greed, you are moving further and further from contentment.

Ambition

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12

In my own career, I have to admit to the temptation to want the headline accomplishments, the temptation to want everyone in my field to know my name, to respect me, to look up to me. I think it's very natural to want to be known as the best at what we do. And along with that, I think there may be a natural tendency to admire those who are in the limelight, particularly those with similar vocations to our own. But listen to what Paul says about ambition: “Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to 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.” How many times have you made it your ambition to lead a quiet life, a life out of the spotlight? How many times have you striven to mind your own business? Does this praise manual labor above white collar jobs where you're less likely to "work with your hands?" I don't have an answer for that last question, particularly in our age when more and more jobs are not working with your hands. But I think the point may be in the "so" at the end. "So that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody." Lead a quiet life and mind your own business so that nonchristians will respect you. Take care of your own job and work with your hands so that you won't be a burden on anyone. Again, I think this is stressing the importance of work above idleness. I think the take away is to work in such a way that others respect you. Not the showy respect that comes with fame, but the respect that comes when coworkers see you doing what you're supposed to be doing, day in and day out.