How's Your Job?

How’s Your Job?

Week of January 28, 2018

Genesis 2:4b-9, 15-25

Exodus 31:1-18

Connect

Hopefully your groups are starting to settle into a rhythm in this 3^rd week or so together.  As you share about your lives, invite your group to consider this statistic together:

“From the ages of 22-65, a committed Christian will spend 2,266 hours at church and 96,000 hours at work.” 

-Discuss together: How has the church equipped you (or not equipped you) to live out your faith in the workplace?

Pray

For the next two weeks, you might find that the “Active” measure is very appropriate for your groups to reflect on.  Asking “How am I engaged with God’s work?” is a great way to think about your spark and how it is or is not being used at work.  Most importantly, it is essential that we see being engaged with God’s work as mostly happening outside of the church walls, like in your workplace or neighborhood.

Passionate: Where did I see God today?

Accepting: How am I building diverse relationships?

Invitational: Who am I connecting with God’s family?

Trusting: Where does God rank?

Active: How am I engaged with God’s work?

Reflect

As a group, we’re primarily going to reflect on the article by Mark Sheerin that I sent out: “Why I Left World Vision for Finance.” http://www.christianitytoday.com/thisisourcity/7thcity/why-i-left-world-vision-for-finance.html

Before we do, you can ask if there are insights or follow-up from Sunday’s sermon.

I’d like to center our time around 3 quotes from Sheerin’s article that help us to think about how our work can be understood as participation in God’s Kingdom work:

“I used to define my World Vision job as bringing opportunity to the poor so they might thrive. I used to define my new job in finance as providing guidance to people so that they could make the most prudent decisions to meet their goals and leave legacies. Now I describe both my careers in the same way: creating redemptive spaces in a fallen and tangled world.”

Ask: How does Sheerin’s description of both of his careers in an understanding of God’s broader work in the world make sense for you? 

“Jesus did not come to call the truly faithful to the mission field, the less faithful to the pastorate, and the barely faithful to finance.”

-Some people may feel like the work they do is somehow “less significant” because they aren’t in full-time ministry. 

Ask: Did you ever feel a pressure that “the most holy” people would somehow be those who pursued a career in ministry?

            -If so, how does that pressure affect how you understand your work and its relationship

            to your faith?

“Fighting against economic injustice through World Vision or through a financial planning firm are both mandated by God. Both tasks are valuable, both tasks seek redemption of broken systems and fallen people. Instead of digging wells, my firm walks with widows through the jungle of probate. Instead of sponsoring children, my firm partners with families through difficult, end-of-life decisions.”

Ask: How can you see your work as part of God’s redemption of the world?  Are there large and/or small ways where God wants to use you in your work?