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God blesses your work, whether in church or the office—shine His light!
As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him.
Matthew 4:18-20
I’ve had many people say to me that I’m lucky to be in full-time ministry because I get to work for the Lord in a Christian environment...
Many of us make a mistake when we read about Jesus calling the disciples, and the mistake is to think that Jesus told his new disciples to leave their jobs.
Yes—Peter, Andrew, James, and John all dropped what they were doing at that particular moment to follow Jesus, but we should note that Jesus had just radically blessed their efforts by providing a miraculous catch of fish, and the tone of the gospels implies that these fishermen rarely saw their nets so full. Later on in John’s gospel, we find the disciples fishing again in the days after Christ’s resurrection, and once again Jesus blesses their efforts with a miraculous catch. He never once chides them for trying to provide for themselves and their families.
I’ve had many people say to me that I’m lucky to be in full-time ministry because I get to work for the Lord in a Christian environment, that I’m somehow doing something holier than others who work in the marketplace. I’ve also heard a good number of believers express a desire to be in full-time ministry with the idea that they can serve God better that way.
I’d just like to say that’s a lot of hooey.
Scripture implies that the disciples and also the Apostle Paul were bi-vocational—working in ministry and also making a living at their chosen trade. And while it would appear that Jesus wasn’t working during his three years of ministry, we know that he worked before then, most likely in his father’s chosen trade as a stonemason, taking care of his family after his father passed away. Never once do Jesus or any of the New Testament writers directly or indirectly teach that working to provide for one’s own is ungodly. Paul actually taught in the opposite direction, saying that those who don’t work shouldn’t eat.
I want to encourage those part-time production leaders reading this—you’re doing well.
So, I want to encourage those part-time production leaders reading this—you’re doing well. The Lord sees your work outside of the church, and he wants to bless it with full nets. There is nothing less holy about a career that provides for a family; in fact, the Lord wants us to give ourselves away in exactly such a manner. Your example of taking care of your family or others in your life with marketplace earnings is how those people learn about the kind provision of the Lord.
The man writing this is bivocational. In fact, I chose this after years of trying to make my church salary work for my family and simply couldn’t. So, I freelance here and elsewhere to provide for my family, and I’m also starting my own magazine that serves local businesses in my city. The Lord is kind and he cares about my family, so he blesses my work.
We can minister in the workplace as much as in the church. We are salt and light, within and without, carrying the presence of Jesus to every place we bring our talents and skills, and the Lord delights to see his children flourish.
The Lord has blessed your work, friend. Take heart.
