Finding God at Work

What does it mean to "love the Lord your God with all your mind" while doing your daily job? Often, it means embracing the pain of thinking hard about things, in order to get to the pleasure of true problem solving. Without embracing that pain of careful, diligent thought, we won't be able to get to the real, glorious triumphs at work. Sometimes we get confused about this. We think that being good is about being nice, not necessarily about being smart. But being good always entails being as smart as we can be—not shirking from the intellectual demands of our work, whatever they are. God is glorified when we do the hard work of thinking in order to do our work well. Sources: Luke 10:25-28 (NIV) Proverbs 25:2 (ESV) Matthew 12:22-28 (NIV) Matthew 10:16 (ESV) 1 Corinthians 2:16 (ESV) Dallas Willard, "Jesus the Logician," Christian Scholar's Review, 1999, Vol. XXVIII, #4, 605-614. John Stott, as quoted in John W. Yates III, "John Stott Would Want Us to Stop, Study, and Struggle," Ideas, Christianity Today, April 26, 2021. C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (New York: HarperCollins, 1952, 1980, 2001). #FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #MentalHealth #TheologicalAnthropology #ChristianHolism #TheGospel #Sanctification #SpiritualGrowth #SelfAcceptance #Thoughts #Luke10 #Proverbs25 #Matthew12 #Matthew10 #1Corinthians2 #DallasWillard #JohnStott #CSLewis #CarMechanic #FoodBanking #FoodInsecurity #Data #Feelings #Heart #Will #Body #Soul #Depression #Anxiety #Addiction #Recovery #Neurodiversity #Trauma #Healing #WholeHearted

We kick off a new series with this episode—Whole-Hearted: Becoming Healthier Christians at Work. If you're like me, your work and your mental health influence each other quite a bit. On the one hand, you want to experience that elusive sense of security and well-being that doesn't depend on your work performance. You want to be a healthy human being. On the other hand, you want to perform. You want to do well, to do a good job. You want to take responsibility for everything that's yours to tackle. You want to be the kind of human being who grows more competent over time. There's a paradox: We need to accept ourselves as we are to be healthy. But we also need to grow and change to be healthy. We need to embrace the challenges that face us. And we need to be okay, somehow, when we fail to meet them the way we wish we would. In our faith, we face the same paradox. We want to rest in God's love for us, separate from our performance. But we also want to grow into deeper Christian character. Sometimes our attempts to "be good Christians" can become really unhealthy. But not trying isn't healthy either. Here's one way to ask the question: How can I become a better Christian without becoming a worse human being? That's what this series is all about. We'll talk about how we put our spiritual life and our mental health together at work—and how we let Jesus guide us in both. In our first part of the series, we'll explore a biblical and theological anthropology: What makes up the human person? We'll look at our thoughts, our feelings, our heart, our body, and our soul. In the second part of the series, we'll look at different mental health challenges we might face at work: depression, anxiety, addiction and recovery, neurodiversity, and trauma. As we go, we'll ask Jesus to show us his way of life no matter what challenges we're facing in the workplace. Sources: Luke 10:25-28 (NIV) #FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #MentalHealth #TheologicalAnthropology #ChristianHolism #TheGospel #Sanctification #SpiritualGrowth #SelfAcceptance #Thoughts #Feelings #Heart #Will #Body #Soul #Depression #Anxiety #Addiction #Recovery #Neurodiversity #Trauma #Healing #WholeHearted

A couple months back, Chris got to preach this sermon at his home church, City of Light. Its focus is Jesus' call of the first disciples: Jesus tenderly catches us in all our inadequacy, so that we can learn to catch others in the same way. Sources: Luke 5:1-11 (NIV) John August Swanson, Great Catch #FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #Sermon #Luke5 #Disciples #Miracle #Calling #JohnAugustSwanson #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses

After the episode, hear from Chris about the Finding God at Work online course! Evangelism at its best is helping people catch a vision of just how beautiful Jesus is. Sources: 2 Corinthians 4:4-6 (NIV) Timothy Keller, as quoted in Christopher Watkin, Biblical Critical Theory: How the Bible's Unfolding Story Makes Sense of Modern Life and Culture (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2022). #FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #InterVarsity #Entering #Kingdom #Beauty #Glory #2Corinthians4 #TimothyKeller #FiveThresholds #5Thresholds #DonEverts #DougSchaupp #IOnceWasLost #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses

The work environment presents its own unique challenges for spiritual conversations. Depending on where you work, your organization might be supportive of faith conversations, or might be antagonistic towards them. Often, restrictions are against "proselytism"—but if we're having thoughtful conversations as we listen to our colleagues and gauge whatever we share to their level of openness, it's unlikely that our actions will be interpreted as proselytism. Even so, sometimes work authorities may discourage these conversations. That doesn't mean we're being "persecuted"; it just means we need to adapt and find the right opportunity to listen to and love the people around us in our specific context. Maybe you can get a conference room for a lunchtime spiritual discussion group; maybe you can't. Either way, there will still be opportunity for you to bring a listening, welcoming presence to your colleagues, customers, or clients. Sources: Daniel 6:5, 21-22 (NIV) Alpha USA Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA. #FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #InterVarsity #Entering #Kingdom #Discipleship #Salvation #CivilRights #HR #Persecution #Adapt #Proselytism #Daniel6 #FiveThresholds #5Thresholds #DonEverts #DougSchaupp #IOnceWasLost #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses

Jesus constantly used the language of "entering" the kingdom. It's possible to be outside, and then to get inside. We enter through faith; the moment when someone places their confidence in Jesus is their entrance into the kingdom of God. At the same time, it's just the *first* moment of a whole life of discipleship to Jesus that is beginning to unfold. Dallas Willard once said, "Discipleship is a natural part of confidence in Jesus as he really is." When Jesus frees us, our response is to follow him. As Charles Wesley wrote in the hymn "And Can It Be": My chains fell off, my heart was free; I rose, went forth, and followed Thee. Sources: Matthew 13:44-46 (NIV) Dallas Willard, "Spiritual Formation as a Natural Part of Salvation," Conversatio Divina, The Martin Institute for Christianity and Culture, Westmont College, April 17, 2009. Charles Wesley, "And Can It Be, That I Should Gain?" Sing Joyfully (Carol Stream, Illinois: Tabernacle Publishing, 1989), Hymnary.org. Oliver Hunkin and Alan Parry (Illustrator), Dangerous Journey: The Story of Pilgrim's Progress (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans, 1985). John Bunyan, The Pilgrim's Progress from this World to That Which is to Come (Project Gutenberg, 1678, 1994). Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA. #FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #InterVarsity #Entering #Kingdom #Discipleship #Salvation #DallasWillard #CharlesWesley #JohnBunyan #PilgrimsProgress #DangerousJourney #FiveThresholds #5Thresholds #DonEverts #DougSchaupp #IOnceWasLost #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses

How can God be good when there is so much evil and suffering in the world? This question is in some ways the most profound challenge to Christian faith. Everyone who asks that question is asking it at two different levels. One is the intellectual level: Is there any way to make moral sense of this world? The other is the personal level. Every human being has known pain in some way. How can we respond to this question thoughtfully? Sources: James 1:2-4 (ESV) "Stephen Fry on God | The Meaning Of Life | RTÉ One," RTÉ - IRELAND'S NATIONAL PUBLIC SERVICE MEDIA, January 28, 2015. Stan Jones, "When Suffering, Find Empathy in the Cross," Preaching Today, August 2017. Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA. #FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #InterVarsity #Seeking #Seeker #Seek #Questions #Conversation #Parables #James1 #Evil #Suffering #Theodicy #Cross #StanJones #FiveThresholds #5Thresholds #DonEverts #DougSchaupp #IOnceWasLost #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses

We Christians believe some pretty strange things. One of the things we believe, which is at least pretty strange today in the Western world, is that spiritual knowledge is possible. We believe it is possible to be known by God, and to come to know God, and things about God. Not just beliefs, not just points of inspiration, but genuine knowledge. This puts us in a sticky situation when it comes to our relationships with those who don't share our Christian faith: We believe we know things that other people don't. Not because we're better than others in any dimension, but simply because we have been given the grace to learn these things. It's like we've been given a pair of glasses that helps us see the world differently. Genuine inclusivity is not saying that our differences of belief don't matter. It's not saying, "Oh well, we can't really know anything anyway." Genuine inclusivity means listening to and respecting others even when the differences really do matter—even when it's not possible for a conflicting set of beliefs to both be true. If our friends are seeking, genuine kindness is offering the glasses to them and asking if they'd like to put them on. Sources: Luke 11:29-32 (NIV) 1 Kings 10:6-9, 13 (NIV) Acts 17:29-30 (NIV) Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA. #FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #InterVarsity #Seeking #Seeker #Seek #Questions #Conversation #Parables #Religion #Luke11 #Jonah #QueenOfSheba #FiveThresholds #5Thresholds #DonEverts #DougSchaupp #IOnceWasLost #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses #Mission #SpiritualFormation #ChristianLife #MissionCentral

The point of sharing the Good News is not "winning." Helping our friends in their journey toward Jesus is not a debate or an intellectual contest. Jesus didn't answer every question asked of him by people who weren't really looking to be persuaded of his message. Instead, he taught in a way that reached the hearts of those who were genuinely seeking God. At the same time, when people are seeking God, they're also grappling with real intellectual questions. We don't want to treat these questions like problems to solve or barriers to overcome. Instead, each question is an opportunity for people to see the beauty of Jesus just a little more clearly. One of seekers' common concerns is the question of Hell: Could a good God really send people to eternal punishment? It's a question that can put us and our friends on edge. But when we look at Jesus' own teachings about Hell, we see that he's teaching about people's hearts. Drawing on the Hebrew wisdom literature, he shows that the trajectory of our lives now continues into eternity. When we take Jesus' teaching seriously, we see that it's good news of justice in the face of profound evil—and goes hand-in-hand with his offer of life to all who sincerely repent and believe. Sources: Matthew 13:10-12 (NIV) Matthew 21:23-27 (NIV) Luke 6:46-49 (NIV) Proverbs 22:8 (ESV) Proverbs 26:11 (Brenton's Spetuagint Translation) Isaiah 9:4 (NIV) Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA. #FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #InterVarsity #Seeking #Seeker #Seek #Questions #Conversation #Parables #Matthew13 #Matthew21 #Luke6 #Judgment #Hell #Eternity #Trajectory #Evil #Justice #LastKingOfScotland #FiveThresholds #5Thresholds #DonEverts #DougSchaupp #IOnceWasLost #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses #Mission #SpiritualFormation #ChristianLife #MissionCentral

As we have conversations with our friends about spiritual things, one of the most powerful things we can do is share stories of our own experiences with Jesus. We see paradigms for this kind of sharing in the Bible itself. After delivering him from demonic oppression, Jesus says to the man of the Gerasenes: "Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you" (Mark 5:19 ESV). Some of us don't have a particularly dramatic conversion story. Some of us can't even remember a time in our lives without faith in Jesus! But the stories we can tell aren't just those about the moment of conversion. We can also tell our "present-tense testimony" of what the Lord is doing in our lives today. All of us have stories that include these ingredients: Sin (and its consequences) Jesus Faith Change When you tell your real story of God's work in your life, it may resonate with your friends more than you expect. Try it for yourself using our one-page guide: Telling What God Has Done For You (Fill in the Blank) Sources: Mark 5:18-20 (ESV) "I've Always Known Jesus. How Do I Share My 'Testimony'?" Mission Central, December 16, 2021. Don Everts and Doug Schaupp, I Once Was Lost: What Postmodern Skeptics Taught Us About Their Path to Jesus (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2008). Friendship Evangelism: The 5 Thresholds toward Faith, InterVarsity Evangelism, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA. #FindingGodAtWork #FaithAndWork #GoodNews #Gospel #TheGospel #InterVarsity #Seeking #Seeker #Seek #Questions #Conversation #Parables #Mark5 #Testimony #Story #FiveThresholds #5Thresholds #DonEverts #DougSchaupp #IOnceWasLost #Personal #Witness #Evangelism #Evangelical #Evangelicalism #GentleWitnesses #Mission #SpiritualFormation #ChristianLife #MissionCentral