Faith @ WorkSample

Jesus invites you today to continue to abide in him. He desires you to abide in him in every task you do, as you respond to emails, make phone calls, and in every interaction with customers and colleagues. Every one of your needs will be met when you abide in Christ, for he is sufficient.

Every place you sit, stand, or walk past is where God loves you. Everything you do is done in a place where God loves you and where God is present.

Jesus chose you and invites you to maintain your friendship with him every moment of every day. This is an invitation to intimate fellowship in which you are fully known and fully loved. It is an open invitation to boldly come to your Father in heaven with your prayers, knowing that God is delighted to hear your voice and to answer your requests.

Abiding in Christ is all about your relationship with God. Abiding in Christ has nothing to do with your work. You can abide in Christ when you are working for the greatest boss in the world, when you are working for the boss who reigns with fear, or working for a boss who manipulates people or stretches the truth. You can abide in Christ when you feel like a square peg in a round hole, or when you thoroughly enjoy your work. You can abide in Christ whether work keeps you crazy busy or you’ve been laid off.

Esther and Mordecai lived in a foreign land, among people who did not believe in God. Both knew the secret of abiding in God. After reporting a plot on the king’s life but not receiving recognition or thanks for many years, Mordecai continued to faithfully do his job without griping because he abided in God (Esther 2:19–23). Because she abided in God, Esther could live in the king’s haram along with all the other virgins waiting to learn who the king would choose as his queen (Esther 2:1–17). Abiding in Christ is not an assurance that life will go smoothly.

We live in a fallen world, and with all the effects of the fall. When we abide in Christ, we don’t walk through this world alone; yet this is not an assurance that we won’t be persecuted for our faith. In fact, just as two magnets repel each other, you may find that some people find you repulsive because of your life in Christ. As Esther and Mordecai experienced, some people, like Haman, considered them and all the Jews repulsive. Not only did Haman find the Jews repulsive, he went out of his way to exterminate them all (Esther 3). Esther’s courage to patiently speak at the right time with a gentle tongue came from abiding in God (Esther 4—7; Prov. 25:15).

When you are abiding in Christ, you are presenting the Lord as holy in the sight of the people you work with. When you do your work as an outflow of abiding with Christ, you will be a blessing to the people you work with, and they will hold you in high esteem (Esther 10:3; Prov. 11:10).

Not abiding in Christ not only impacts your life but also ripples through the lives of the people you work with. Moses learned this the hard way when he struck the rock instead of speaking to it (Num. 20:11–13). Each person is accountable before God for how, or if, they abide in Christ.

All humans have an innate desire for fruitfulness. But to be fruitful, you must be connected to the source of nourishment—Christ, your Creator and the Creator of this universe. When you abide in Christ, you will bear fruit according to the gifts and skills God blessed you with. When you abide in Christ, your work will be pleasing in the eyes of your Father.

When you abide in Christ, you will be filled with an inexplicable joy that is not defined by how your work is going or by the people you work with. Heavenly joy is not deterred by suffering or circumstances.

In each task you do today, in the place where you find yourself right now, abide in God’s Word. Allow Christ to transform your heart through His Word. In each email and conversation abide in God’s love. Allow Christ to fill your heart with love for all people. Then watch God weave together your life’s story to surprise you with joy as he accomplishes his divine purpose.

Remember, God loves you and has chosen you! Abide in him!

Prayer

Almighty God, thank you that you have raised me up in Christ and seated me in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus. Help me to abide in you as I go about my work in order that my life might reflect the incomparable riches of your grace. Amen.