It took me a long time to even consider the notion of God in the workplace.
In my late thirties, I started (sort of) getting more into the church thing. My work week would be busy, and Saturday was “do something fun” day, but I started looking forward to going to Sunday School and church. It felt like I was doing something good for those three hours.
Monday morning was time to launch into another hectic work week. Day by day, I would battle through, doing what I could to excel at my job, and then relaxing at night. And on the routine went.
Over the next couple of years, my faith became more and more important, and things changed. Gradually, Sunday School turned into my devotional time, and church transformed into worship. My relationship with God was real, and it was personal.
At least on Sundays. Monday to Friday was still work time.
Ignoring God in the Workplace
If we believe God designed and fabricated our universe, that he is timeless and eternal, why do we try to confine him to one day a week? We let God do his thing on Sundays, and we try to take care of Monday to Saturday on our own. Seems a bit self-centered, even absurd, doesn’t it?
It is also self-defeating.
For example, while making business decisions, we call on resources such as our manager, other departments, and experienced co-workers. When seeking direction, we would never disregard our CEO. For handling frustrations, we go home to our coping mechanism of choice.
In all of this, why do we tend to ignore God?
What if we realized we had a resource that made decision-making more clear-cut? And what would work be like if we got satisfaction from everything we did, not just from a few things? How much nicer would it be if we could calmly accept the frustrations–there are always frustrations–that come with work and not let them ruin our state-of-mind.
“The gospel frees us from the relentless pressure of having to prove ourselves and secure our identity through work, for we are already proven and secure.” (Timothy Keller in the book Every Good Endeavor)
The Rest of the Story
In my fortieth year, I took a big step and signed up for a nine-month program called Lifework Leadership. One Wednesday morning each month, I joined 45 other business people to hear incredible speakers talk about faith as a worldview, not just something we practiced on Sundays.
I came out of Lifework Leadership a different person, or at least a more whole person. I realized that God wants to be involved in all parts of our lives, including the workplace. Seemingly suddenly, the world opened up to me. God was everywhere! How had I missed that before?
And I started to wonder: what if everybody started seeing their work as a ministry? And what if every business person began applying their vocational skills in their church and community?
What would the world be like then?
“Our work can be a calling only if it is reimagined as a mission of service to something beyond merely our own interests.” (Timothy Keller in the book Every Good Endeavor)
Involving God in the Workplace
In the STEPS Journey Blog article on “A Crash Course in Effective Leadership,” we saw that there are tools we can utilize to help us succeed, and lead, in the workplace. These steps allow us to utilize God’s help to be better at what we do. And to make a difference at the same time.
These five STEPS will help us professionally, as well as spiritually and emotionally:
- Surrender – Involving God in our decision-making to know when to take charge and when to let things go, with more certainty and calmness in either situation.
- Transformation – Developing the self-awareness to understand our strengths and weaknesses, positioning us to work on the things that can make us better.
- Empathy – Connecting with other people at a deeper level to build relationships that are mutually beneficial and productive, but also grace-oriented and enjoyable.
- Progress – Using prayer and thoughtful meditation as daily habits to help us work on the next right thing, one step at a time, in the most effective manner.
- Service – Seeing our work as a way to serve others, and doing what we can to act as a positive example for our co-workers.
These are simple steps we can take to involve God in the workplace. Steps that will change how we work and how we live, seven days a week.
Question: During a normal work day, do you involve God in your job?
Action: Pick one of the five STEPS that you will work on this week.
