What would it be like…
To experience the same uplift at work as we do during worship music?
What would it be like…
If, every day at work, we felt peace knowing we are upholding God’s standards of integrity?
In Matthew 22:39, God tells us to “love our neighbors as ourselves.” In the work world, we don’t have to look any further than headline news to see how far away from this we really are.
The Sea of Sin in the Workplace
We readily see the mental and physical costs of sin in the workplace:
– The anguish of wrongdoers once they’re caught in deception
– The despair of employees losing retirements because of bad management
– The tragedy of young people looking for wholesome role models in the work world, and often coming up empty-handed.
What the working world often misses is the spiritual dimension of sin. The costs are much higher. They include a failure to advance God’s kingdom in the work world. They include a legacy of corruption that’s inherited and perpetuated by future generations. We’re engaged in a spiritual battle for the future of the work world.
Recovering Sharkaholics
For Christians, the walk at work isn’t a walk in the park. In truth, we are swimming with sharks. Worse yet, we Christians are sharks too! At our best, we’re recovering sharkaholics who keep our jaws in check when we smell blood in the water. At our worst, we go on the attack just like our non-Christian colleagues.
Consider the foundations for recovering spiritual integrity at work:
1. Introspection versus Satisfaction. We must never assume our thoughts and actions honor our colleagues and God. Instead, we must remain introspective enough to spot our inevitable faults, and responsive enough to address them.
2. Implementation versus Stagnation. We need to take God’s Word, and make it REAL in the work world. This is the litmus test of being At Work on Purpose.
3. Integration versus Separation. Consider Colossians 3:23: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.”
We live in a country built on a separation between church and state. The intent of our country’s Founding Fathers was to ensure that the state never imposed a faith on our citizens. But it was NOT their intent to keep the faithful from living out their spiritual convictions at work!
God calls us to fully live out our faith at work; not to implement part way, but all the way. We must recapture the heart and the passion of God for the work world. We must rise above swimming with the sharks and restore our full Christian commitment, and contribution, to the work world.