149. GOD AND YOUR WORK. Ecclesiastes 9:10.

Do the people at your work know you are a Christian? If not, why not? Here are some of the answers you may think of giving the above question - (1) That’s private, It’s none of their business, (2) They don’t know anything about religion so wouldn’t be interested, (3) I may be called names or classed as a “Weirdo” or “A religious Nut” or even “a Jesus Freak” or “I really need this job, so why would I jeopardize it.” First of all let me tell you, most employers respect openness and honesty, and if you are open about your loyalty to God, you will be open about your loyalty to the firm you work for. Isn’t this one of the necessary attributes he/she is looking for in an employee? Secondly, You don’t really know if anyone is interested in religion or not, or what people’s true thoughts are in this regard, or will what they may be going through, But when crises enter their lives, such as Divorce, suicide, accidents terminal illness, etc. who are they going to turn to? Certainly not to someone who can’t give them answers or lead them to a loving God; NO! They need more than a shoulder to cry on, and if people in your work environment know that you know a God who cares and possibly may help them, you will be their first port of call. Thirdly, Yes, for a little while people will be a bit wary of you, but that’s just because they don’t understand, don’t judge or label them, just give them time, and when they see your Christianity demonstrated at the workplace in your daily behaviour, believe me, they do come around, not because of what you are doing but because of what God is doing in them through you. You see, He is doing something in them at the same time that attracts them to you, your light is shining just by being a Christian; You don’t have off days, you put in an extra half hour here and there, without pay just to get a particular job done, you give someone a ride home if they missed the bus; share your fish and chips; There are thousands of ways of letting your little light shine, and the bulb gets a little brighter each time. Never be ashamed of your God, because He said, “If you stand up for me in this world before men, then, I will stand up for you before all of Heaven’s court on the day of judgement. Who could ask for a better advocate? What more do you need​? In the Bible, you will have noticed that the majority of people worked, and most of the heroes had secular vocations. Isaac developed land, Jacob was a Farmer, Joseph served God best by staying in his well-paid government job rather than starting a non-prophet faith-based organisation to do charity work. Daniel was an Immigrant who attended Babylon’s version of Oxford or Cambridge and grew to be Prime Minister of all Egypt, Lydia was a profitable businesswomen in textiles. Conceivably the ultimate expression of how much God values work is Jesus the “Carpenter” For most of His life, He occupied Himself in the Building profession, creating benches and tables, and probably was also engaged in construction work as well. The word we translate as “Carpenter” comes from the Greek word “Takton”, from which we get the word technology, and would contain the capability to do stone and masonry work. So those men who originally wrote the Bible were all workers, Fishermen, Doctors, tax Collectors and people from all areas of life., it was Penned by workers, about workers and for workers. Yes, Work was and is God’s idea as it says in (Genesis 2:15) “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” And thus the first man Adam was a landscaper. By identifying what you have been called to do in life and giving yourself fully to it, you are ‘ordained’ as any Pastor who stands in a pulpit. It’s a pity we use the word ‘secular’ when it comes to any kind of work other than the church work, because God doesn’t see it that way, He sees all honest work worthy of His smile of approval. When it comes to work, the thing He requires from you and me is wrapped up in the words of (Ecclesiastes 10:14} “Whatever you do, do it well.” Most adults spend about half their waking lives at work. Your work is a huge part of God’s plan for your life, He designed a specific vocation just for you in which you should find personal fulfilment to meet the needs of your family and help to perpetuate His purposes here on earth. The fourth commandment covers all seven days of the week not just the Sabbath {Exodus 20;9-11) tells us “Six days you shall labour and do all your work… for in six days the Lord made the heaven and the earth.” Sometimes we hear sermons designed to make us feel guilty about not keeping the Sabbath, But have you ever heard a sermon designed to make you feel guilty about not honouring the six day wok-week? The point is that just as God made and loves the Sabbath, He made and loves the work-week as well, which he arranged for our benefit, it keeps us spiritually, physically and mentally healthy, fulfilling His purposes in our lives. In (Luke 17:21) we read “The Kingdom of God is in your midst” So whether you are a Butcher, Baker or Candlestick maker, you and I need to demonstrate integrity in our place of work. It’s embarrassing when non-believers say I’ll never do business with Christians again.’ In (Psalm 8;1) we read “O Lord, how excellent is your name in all the earth” It’s His name we are exposing with our attitude, behaviour, and attendance at work. Here are a few things you may like to check up with and or change;- continual lateness, clock watching, messing around, water cooler gossip, flirting, speaking badly about your boss or other members of staff, pilfering or steeling and off-coloured jokes and stories, these things have no place in your work environment or anywhere in the life of the believer, don’t take part in the conversation, just remove yourself from the area, walk away, Scripture speaks to us in (1Corinthians 4-2.) “It is required that those who have been given a trust must prove Faithful.” It’s a good thought to pray on your way to work something like this “Lord, today I want to do a good job and bring credit to your name Please send your Holy Spirit to guard my mouth, direct my steps and check my behaviour. In Jesus’ name I pray. The first person in the Bible who was said to be “Filled with the Spirit of God” was Bezalel and if his name doesn’t ring a bell, it’s because he wasn’t a Prophet, Priest, king or an Apostle. You see, God chooses whoever He wants ‘Big shot’ or not. Yet this unknown man (at least in spiritual terms) had one of the most important jobs in the old Testament. Bezalel was selected by God to oversee and manage the building of the Tabernacle. He is never mentioned again in Scripture, but God had gifted him, and he used his gifts to glorify God. And this is what God said about him, (Exodus 31:2-5) “I have chosen \Bezalel\...and\ ...filled him with the Spirit of God, and wisdom and understanding, with knowledge and all kinds of skills – to make all kinds of designs in silver, gold and bronze, to cut and set wood and stones and to engage in all kinds of crafts”. Imagine being Bezalel, From your youth you loved to work with your hands .You don’t know if God is involved in this, but He actually is – He actually placed these desires within your heart and mind. When you are working, the joy you feel is the presence of God. You have certain strengths you were born with, they will always be your strengths and you delight in them. Wonderful things happen when you discover those strengths, put them to use and focus improving on them. Trying to develop in an area where God hasn’t gifted you is futile, like instructing a rabbit to swim or a snail to run. But when you’re in your God-given slot, working with your God-given strengths, you’re at you’re best. When that happens, you are blessed, and so are those around you. In God’s plan, Bezalel is as important as Moses. And what you and I do matters very much to God. You see, God is not only interested in our prayer time, No! He is vitally interested in what we think, say and do every moment of our lives. Now, that’s a thought worth keeping in mind. Thank you for reading these thoughts on God in the workplace. If our lives truly belong to God, and we expect His continual presence, strength and protection, then we are obliged to provide a suitable place of abode for Him. OH Lord God, bless us all with Your continual presence. Phaline.