Friday, May 21, 2010
Monday, May 10, 2010
god on the job
Recently, at Emmaus, we've been exploring a Christian approach to work. Here are some of the highlights:
What Do You Do?
Many of us have built (or reinforced) walls between the parts of our lives which seem to be spiritual and the parts that don't. Consequently, we often don't expect God to relate to our work, or our work to be relevant to our faith. We opperate according to one paradigm at church, and another at work, thinking we can divide our lives into parts. But in the end, its not our lives, but we, ourselves, who become divided.
It's Not About What You Do, part 1:
It's about who you are. Production doesn't define us. God does. "Pharaoh" calls us brickmakers. Our value is determined solely by how much we make. But God calls us children.
It's Not About What You Do, part 2:
It's about how you do it. Nearly anything can be done in a way that honors God. (Who you are - not what you're doing - determines how you do it.) The Christ-follower will put her whole heart into whatever she does.
Finding Meaning in the Mundane
Work is complex because it's so closely linked to creation (Gen. 1:1, 1:27, 2:2-3), but it's also tied to the curse (Gen. 3). So sometimes work is life-giving; sometimes it's drudgery. But even in the most mundane, there is meaning: 1. God is in the routine. He most-often communicates his good presence in patterns (not in the exception to patterns). 2. Our character is developed in the routine. It's our choices in the mundane that shape us. If we will pay attention, be alert, live in the moment, and recognize that God is everywhere, the mundane fills with meaning. There are no ordinary days.
What Do You Do?
Many of us have built (or reinforced) walls between the parts of our lives which seem to be spiritual and the parts that don't. Consequently, we often don't expect God to relate to our work, or our work to be relevant to our faith. We opperate according to one paradigm at church, and another at work, thinking we can divide our lives into parts. But in the end, its not our lives, but we, ourselves, who become divided.
It's Not About What You Do, part 1:
It's about who you are. Production doesn't define us. God does. "Pharaoh" calls us brickmakers. Our value is determined solely by how much we make. But God calls us children.
It's Not About What You Do, part 2:
It's about how you do it. Nearly anything can be done in a way that honors God. (Who you are - not what you're doing - determines how you do it.) The Christ-follower will put her whole heart into whatever she does.
Finding Meaning in the Mundane
Work is complex because it's so closely linked to creation (Gen. 1:1, 1:27, 2:2-3), but it's also tied to the curse (Gen. 3). So sometimes work is life-giving; sometimes it's drudgery. But even in the most mundane, there is meaning: 1. God is in the routine. He most-often communicates his good presence in patterns (not in the exception to patterns). 2. Our character is developed in the routine. It's our choices in the mundane that shape us. If we will pay attention, be alert, live in the moment, and recognize that God is everywhere, the mundane fills with meaning. There are no ordinary days.
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