That Doesn't Make Sense

When you compare what God says and what a lot of people in business say it takes to succeed, it doesn't always make sense to follow God at work.

Jesus said to love your enemies. God calls us to love the unloveable. As Christians, we should forgive even when others hurt us deeply.

How are you at obeying the tough things?

If you struggle, you're not alone. Saul was good at trying to follow God while balancing what made sense. In 1 Samuel 15, Saul was commanded to completely destroy the Amalekites. But that didn't really make sense to him. The sheep and cattle could be used to reward the troops. Keeping the king alive would give Saul a great trophy. Saul obeyed God as long as God's commands made sense to Saul.

Be careful at trying to use common sense to make decisions. Follow God, even when it doesn't fit with what others are telling you.

Giants

This weekend, my wife and I watched the movie “Facing the Giants.” In the movie, the main character, Grant Taylor, is a high school football coach who hasn’t had a winning record despite six years at his school. He has parents that are call on the principal to fire him. One of his assistants is less than supportive. His players doubt him and the program. Basically, just about everything that could be going wrong in his professional life is going wrong.

Like a good movie, everything worked out in the end for Coach Taylor. But what I really liked was what he said to his players at a pivotal point in the movie. “It’s not about you…When we win, we’re going to praise God. When we lose, we’re going to praise God.”

The only way you can honor God when things are going right is if you recognize that life and all its accomplishments are not about you. Coach Taylor demanded that his players give 100% of themselves to whatever it was that they were doing—God wants our best work. But after that, the rest is up to Him.

What giants are you facing? Feeling pressure to perform or else? Feeling like everything that you tried fizzled out? Surrounded by people who expected failure? Remember to give 100%. But after that, remember that the rest is up to God. Win or lose, all you have to do is honor Him.

An Invitation to a Relationship

Why honor God in the workplace? It's not because doing so makes you holy (Ephesians 2:8-9). One way to think about it is that the opportunity to honor God at work is an invitation to a relationship with God in this aspect of your life.

Last Sunday, I heard a sermon on John 5:39-40 (and the context around those verses). The Pharisees were experts in the law but never made the connection between scriptures and relationship with Jesus.

Think about that in the context of the things in this blog. You can follow all the things in the Bible that connect to work. But if that doesn't lead you to relationship, you've missed the point. Whether it's honesty in reporting expenses, loving the unlovable coworker, or treating your boss or subordinate with respect, living out your faith at work is your opportunity to be in relationship with Jesus in a major part of your life. The reverse is also true. Trying to compartmentalize where focus on Christianity on Sunday but focus only on work on Monday through Friday means that for 8ish hours a day, 5 days a week, you are removing yourself from a relationship with Him.

As the week begins, think about work as an invitation to join in relationship with your Savior. If honoring God at work feels like a list of do's and don't's, putting relationship at the center tends to take the burden away.

When Bad Things Happen

John 9

I heard a sermon a couple of weeks ago that really hit home. When bad things happen to you at work, how do you respond? Think about that for a minute. It could be someone else getting an account that you had wanted. You might be passed up for promotion or even lose your job. For me, it's usually a bad class or some of my research being rejected. A common response to bad things that happen to us at work is to ask "why". "God, why is this happening to me?"

That's probably exactly what Jesus' disciples thought when they asked Him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind" in John 9:2. They saw that something terrible had happened to this man, and they wanted to know why. But look at the next verse. Jesus tells them that they are asking the wrong question--"this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him."

"Why" or "why not" isn't the right question. Instead, we should be asking "how can God be glorified through this" or "what can God reveal through this."

From time to time, you hear a celebrity or professional athlete praise God for their success. That's great, and I'm glad they recognize that their gifts come from him. But how do those people respond to adversity? When bad things happen in their careers, can they still give honor to God? A great example of that is Colt McCoy's speech after the 2010 BCS title game. McCoy said that he knew in anything, that God is in control. Incidentally, God used that moment to give McCoy a national audience to share His faith, encouraging people to seek Jesus.

What about you? Think about the last bad time or negative experience at work. How did you respond? Did you search for answers, questioning why this was happening to you? Or did you look for how God was revealing Himself and how this situation might work for His glory?

Temptations Because of Motivations

Look at Jesus' first temptation (Matthew 4:3-4). "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." What's wrong with Jesus telling the stones to become bread? Nothing. God provided water for the Israelites through a stone--why would providing Himself bread from stones be a problem. There was nothing inherently wrong with turning the stones into bread. The issue would be the motivation. Depending on what translation you read, Satan was either tempting Jesus to prove that He was God's Son or suggesting that Jesus use His power to meet His needs rather than relying on the Father's sovereignty. It was wrong to turn the stones to bread because of who was telling Him to do it.

Think about your job. There are lots of things that you could do in your job that are morally neutral. But despite that neutrality, how you approach those situations still matters. Take this account or don't take it? Say this to my supervisor or not? Accept a new position or don't accept it? In cases where there is not a clear answer, are you choosing one path for self-serving reasons or other-serving reasons? Remember, Joseph got promoted from prisoner to captain of the prison to second-in-command of the most powerful country in the world, so God is not against success at work. But Joseph pursued God through all of those promotions.

What decisions are you making at work? Could be big ones, could be small ones. It could be that all of the options in a decision are good options. The question then becomes one of motivation. Whose voice are you following? Are you pursuing self-serving motivations or other-serving motivations?

Praise

Monday, I blogged about giving thanks for where God has taken you. Wednesday, I wrote about being thankful in all circumstances.

As I think about the passages that I cited in those posts, I had workplace gratitude in mind. Today, as we end the week, think about God's amazing grace to you. Jesus gave up everything in order to be humiliated in ways that we can't even imagine so that we could have hope of being with Him for eternity. I think that puts everything in perspective.

Today, thank God for His grace and for Jesus. End the week of Thanksgiving with praise to God.

Updating Your Resume

Someone sent this to me and gave me permission to use it in this context.

"I was updating my resume, and had the most amazing experience. It’s been a while since I’ve really gone way back to the beginning of the job postings on my resume, the little internships I had as an undergraduate student, the small jobs, etc. Going back through those different positions, reading the responsibilities and tasks, and seeing how much my responsibilities have changed and grown over the last decade--and mentally going back to all those different co-workers, locations, and experiences--reminds me of the extent to which my life has already been so full of rich experiences, education, people, meaningful work, family, friends, mentors, traveling, etc. I was struck, once again, by how my “resume” is so much more than just that. It represents all of these other things, which are a wealth of blessings, full of opportunities that many people do not enjoy, and no doubt full of blessings that have gone unnoticed and unappreciated. Thank you, Lord, for all these experiences!"

As I read this, I felt a lot of gratitude about my own work experiences. I went back and considered by vita (an academic resume), thinking about all the classes and research projects that I'd prayed would go well (as well as those that I had forgotten to cover in prayer). Whether you're recently out of college or nearing retirement, take time to look at where you've been and thank God for the journey to this point.

Being Exceptional in Ordinary Things

Sometimes we think that we need to do extraordinary things for God. Oswalt Chambers notes that we like to think about acts like walking on water as demonstrations of tremendous faith, but that following Jesus over the dry land of the mundane takes far more faith. Chambers states that "it does require the supernatural grace of God to live twenty-four hours in every day as a saint, to go through drudgery as a disciple...we have to be exceptional in the ordinary things, to be holy in mean streets, among mean people" (My Utmost for His Highest, p. 295).

All of us would like to convert all of the unbelievers in our workplaces and thereby demonstrate our worth to God. But can you live every day without seeing any results? Can you honor God even when it means that you're misunderstood or isolated? Can you choose to do the right thing even in the seemingly insignificant things?

As we end the week, choose to be exceptional, even in the ordinary details of life.

Crushed into Wine

We all have those days that really suck. Those times when it seems like everything goes wrong that could have gone wrong. Maybe those days are frequent in your job, maybe they're rare. But we all have them.

Sometimes, it's comforting to try to make sense of those experiences. What is God trying to teach me? Sometimes we can see a potential purpose. But most of the time, it seems meaningless. It doesn't add up for us.

I read something a few days ago that really speaks to this in Oswalt Chambers' My Utmost for His Highest. Chambers notes that God uses every day circumstances to crush us as a vintner crushes grapes. He says that "God can never make us wine if we object to the fingers He uses to crush us" (p. 274). Chambers also states that "if we're going to be made into wine, we have to be crushed--you cannot drink grapes."

Sometimes, the crushing doesn't make any sense to us. Try as we might, we cannot find a reason or purpose in our suffering. This isn't a hopeful blog post in that sense. But God uses those circumstances in ways we may never know this side of heaven to shape us, to crush us. He calls us to be faithful in them.

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.

Let Your Light Shine

Yesterday I heard someone talking about Christians being active in the community. He quoted Matthew 5:16, "let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." I think that really captures what Monday Morning Christianity is all about. Honoring God at work is not about shoving a Bible at everyone you meet. To be sure, let people know what you believe. But being Christian at work is about living in such a way that people see Jesus in your actions--in the way you treat your supervisor, the way you handle conflicts, and the way you talk.

Job Satisfaction

I have to admit a bit of hypocracy in this post. I get paid to do what I love, so it's difficult for me to write with credibility about how job satisfaction is less important than most of us think it is. Nevertheless...

All of us want to have a job that makes us happy. We want to wake up every morning excited about what we have ahead of us at work. We want to end every work day satisfied by the work we have done.

Unfortunately, that's not the case for many people. Many people dread their jobs. They get ready every morning looking for ways to delay getting to work. Perhaps they search for any reason to distract themselves during the day because their job is monotonous drudgery. If that's you, then please know that you have my sympathy.

However, loving what you do is not a prerequisite for honoring God at work. Doing what you do in love is. Regardless of whether you are satisfied with the tasks that are required of you at work and regardless of whether you are satisfied with the people with whom you work (coworkers, supervisors, etc.), your attitude shouldn't depend on your circumstances. Instead, your attitude should be based on the grace given to you by God through Jesus Christ.

Paul talks about contentment in every circumstance (Phillippians 4:10-13). Paul found such contentment because he understood that the only thing that mattered was Jesus (verse 13). As you approach your work, don't let your attitude be determined by anything about your job or your workplace. Instead, rest in Jesus. Let Him be your strength.

You Think You Have It Bad?

Habakkuk is an interesting prophet. Besides having a name that's fun to spell, he really had a rough life. He was a farmer, and he complained to God that his livelihood was failing (3:17-18). No fig buds. No grapes. No olives. The fields produce no food. No sheep or cattle. Everything is going down hill.

Maybe that's how things are going where you work. Losing accounts. Less profitability. Being audited. Facing layoffs. Increased competition.

Look at Habakkuk's response in verse 18: "yet I will rejoice in the Lord. I will be joyful in God, my Savior."

Your response when things go bad says a lot about your faith. It's easier to honor God when things go well than it is to honor Him when things seem at their worst. But true faith doesn't depend on circumstances.

Wisdom

I head the words "wise" and "wisdom" a lot. "That was a wise move just then." "Your decision showed a lot of wisdom." What do those words really mean? Most of the time, people mean something like "you really made that decision anticipating the consequences" or "that decision is likely to have good outcomes." Interestingly, James 3:14-16 talks about how worldly wisdom is often tainted by envy or selfish ambition. The executive who wisely chose friends to help him/her climb the corporate ladder. The coworker who wisely chose not to trust others in the office.

In the context of this passage, wisdom means something very different than what we often think. James begins in verse 13 by explaining that wisdom is evident from good deeds and humility. We could probably conceed the "good deeds" part. But when have you ever associated humility with wisdom? But then look at verses 17-18. James goes on to say that wisdom from heaven is pure, peace-loving, considerate, submissive... I don't know about you, but I'm not sure how often I've heard those words associated with saying someone is wise.

Wisdom is about taking knowledge and applying it to situations in which you find yourself. Wisdom from the world takes knowledge from the world's perspective, which is focused on self, and applies it to decisions. Wisdom from God takes God's perspective, which is focused on Him and on others, and uses that knowledge to approach situations.

How will you be wise next week? As you think about work, where can you be purer? Where can you bring peace? How can you be considerate to others? In what ways will you be submissive to your boss? How can you show mercy to others, especially those who report to you or are further down the hierarchy?

Mission Trips

I heard a sermon a few Sundays ago about what mission means. The preacher said that mission isn't necessarily a big task that we have to go somewhere to do. Mission is who we are as a church. He said that "God is a god who sends." That's an interesting idea. Acts 17:26 explains that God intentionally marked out the times and boundaries for the nations, and I've already posted about what this might mean in terms of God placing you here at this time. What if God has been preparing you to be a missionary in your workplace? Depending on where you work, you might be your coworkers' connection to Jesus. Perhaps God is sending you to your workplace.

If so, you cannot serve him living one life on Sunday and another Monday through Friday. You cannot fulfill your mission if you compartmentalize your life so that "church life" never intrudes during the work week. That's why it's so important to focus on Jesus every day, not just on Sunday.

Making Decisions

You know, sometimes I think it would be more efficient if God planned out our lives and put big neon signs in the sky to show us what directions to take. The pillar of cloud and fire that directed the Israelites might get lost in the sky now, but neon would get us there. And that way, we could be sure of being on the right track.

When you have a decision to make, seek God. And if His will in that decision isn’t immediately clear, make sure you’re taking care of the things that you can be certain of being His will: love Him, love others. If at that point, you still don’t have direction, it could be that the specifics of the decision matter less than honoring and obeying Him through either option.

Making the Most of Every Opportunity

Ephesians 5:15-17

“Time is money,” so the saying goes, the idea being that our time is a very precious resource. While the idiom itself isn’t particularly biblical, the sentiment behind it is. God wants us to take very good care of our time. Just to be clear, that doesn’t mean frantically trying to do everything that we think needs to get done—we’re not to be slaves to the clock. But it does mean that we need to carefully consider how we spend each minute. Look at Ephesians 5:15: “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity.” God wants us to live in such a way that we are taking care of the time with which He has entrusted us.

Why are we to do this? Look immediately before and after that quotation. Paul is encouraging the Ephesians to “live as children of the light” (verse 8). Verse 16 says to make “the most of every opportunity because the days are evil.” The Ephesians lived in a society where people would try to corrupt their faith. Paul encouraged them to “not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is” (verse 17).

We, too, live in evil days. We, too need to make the most of every opportunity, which is why your faith is so important in your workplace. Don’t miss this opportunity to reflect Christ to others!

A Psalm of Fairness

I wanted to follow up Monday’s post about not leaning on your own understanding of fairness with one more word on the subject from Psalms. You know, Psalm 1 is a funny chapter. Look at the first verse of the first chapter of Psalms: “Blessed is the one who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked.” Verse 3 says “whatever that person does prospers.” The rest of the chapter is about how the wicked won’t do well. Wait a minute! That’s not how life works. That would be great if the righteous always prospered and the wicked didn’t. But we all can name good people that never seem to get ahead. And just as easily, we can probably all name bad people that get all the breaks.

Now look at Psalm 150. The last several chapters begin with the instructions to “praise the Lord.” The book closes with “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord” (150:6).

That doesn’t seem right. Chapter 1 starts with a statement that never seems to work out from our perspective, that the people of God will prosper while the wicked suffer. It’s hard to see that. So how can I “praise the Lord” when life seems so unfair?

When I was in college, a professor pointed out the issue with the two ends of Psalms and said that the key to the dilemma of praising God when things don’t seem fair was in chapter 73. Look at verses 3-13: “For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. They are free from the burdens common to humanity…this is what the wicked are like—always carefree, they increase in wealth. Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure.”

Sound familiar? Have you ever had moments thinking those very same thoughts? Asaph gives the answer in verse 16: “When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me until I entered the sanctuary of God.” It just doesn’t make sense to us when we see things from a worldly perspective. It’s only when we understand our circumstances from God’s perspective that we can understand how “the one who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked” can be blessed. And that understand is why we can “praise the Lord.”

Psalm 73 closes this way: “But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.”

It doesn’t matter what seems fair or unfair according to the standards of our world. What matters is that we stay near God, that we make Him our refuge, and that we tell of His deeds. Don’t think about excuses for unfairness or reasons why people do the things that they do. Instead, accept that God is the only thing that really matters. And because He is, give Him praise.

Lean Not On Your Own Understanding

So last week’s posts about life not being fair and about not being able to count on people around you were kind of “downers.” It’s not happy to realize that you have to be content with an unfair world where people fail to meet your expectations. Today is the other side of that.

What happens when life seems unfair? What do you do when it just doesn’t make sense? Look at Proverbs 3:5-7. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil.”

Trust in the Lord. Lean not on your own understanding. Do not be wise in your own eyes.

When we try to understand things from a worldly perspective, they don’t always make sense. It’s only when we understand who is in control that we can deal with unfairness. That’s true at work or anywhere else.

Princeton Professor Advocates for Faith at Work

There was an article a couple of months ago in the Princeton Alumni Weekly that talked about Princeton Professor David Miller, who is the director for the Princeton University Faith and Work Initiative. Read the article about Miller and his program here.

I really appreciated this. The author profiles Miller who believes that faith and work can be intertwined. Similar to the ideas in this blog, Miller felt coming out of college that he was told to live two separate lives--his work life and his church life. After 16 years in international finance, Miller saw that the two might not need to be separated.

The part of the article that most stood out to me was when he talked about the advantage that a person of faith has in the workplace over an athiest. You might not think about your religion as an advantage at work, but the article author quotes Miller as saying: "One aspect of having a worldview grounded in faith or metaphysical things is that you have a different perception of time. You think in terms of eternity, and how you live this life matters for one’s eternity. If you have a longer sense of time infused by some spiritual tradition, it also means you treat the marketplace differently."

As you work, do you focus on eternity? How does that focus shape the way you interact with people at work? How does that focus change the way you do your job?