The gospel frees us from going to work to prove what we can do and to serve ourselves. Our goal may not be to become a millionaire, or buy a better car, or receive recognition and praise from industry leaders, but is our work motivated by love for the world around us or by love for ourselves? Do we do our work to benefit others or to have our own little heaven here? The gospel saves us so deeply and satisfies us so completely that we can give ourselves—our gifts, our careers, our lives—to be used for the good of others, especially for the good of their faith and their joy in God. Wherever we work, God has placed us in that place as agents of eternal joy. Below are eight goals that should guide the career of every Christian. Fall in love with these aspirations and your work will bear much fruit for Christ, regardless of your field of work.
1. Aspire to show God as someone great
God's passion for His glory inspires everything He does, including loving and saving sinners (Is 44:22-23). And now He calls the redeemed to do everything for His glory: “Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do everything to the glory of God” (1Co 10:31). Everything we do: whether private or public, whether for recreation or vocation, whether Sunday or Monday, whether we are single or married. Of all the works God accomplishes in the world, the greatest is revealing His amazing power and beauty to people everywhere. Wherever we work, He wants that to be the goal of our life and our calling—for people to see our good work and give glory to our God (Mt 5:16).
2. Aspire to contribute to the work of God
If our only category for the Lord's work is Christian ministry, we will soon disconnect our vocational life from our mission in life—to exalt God and His glory. All work is part of God's work—prepared by Him, carried out through faith in Him, and done for Him and before Him. Keeping the books of a business, developing a program, and making a meal are part of the work of God. work of God, planned by Him long before our first day of work. All our good works were prepared in advance for us to walk in them (Eph 2:10). Our work is part of God's work because we cannot do it without Him. Nothing, vocational or not, will please God if it is not done in faith, that is, actively trusting Him and treasuring Jesus. Paul said, “...and whatever does not come from faith is sin” (Rom 14:23, NASB). The route of the truck driver, the precision of the surgeon, and the counsel of the counselor are all part of the Lord's work when we do it in dependence on Him, trusting that He will give us the strength, wisdom, and ability to do it. Paul's words in Colossians 3:23-24 (“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not as for anyone else in this world... You serve Christ the Lord”) are not hyperspiritual advice. so you can overcome the psychological barriers of your work. When we love Jesus, everything we do is a service done for Him .
3. Aspire to find your joy in God, not in money
“Whom do I have in heaven but You? If I am with you, I want nothing more on earth” (Ps 73:25). Perhaps no distraction will be as subtly attractive as our career (or the success, fame, and money that comes with it). Having to dedicate 100,000 hours to it, it is obvious that our work will consume a large part of our time and attention. However, no one can love God and money—and that includes success, recognition, perfectionism, and promotions. It's not that it's bad for our health. It is impossible (Mt 6:24). The only way to overcome these threats to our soul is to ensure that our greatest satisfaction is in God. Isaiah wrote: “Why do you spend money on what is not bread, and your wages on what does not satisfy? Listen to me well, and you will eat what is good, and delight in delicious foods” (Is 55:2). Someone who eats this way—who feeds on what God is for them—will not waste their life wishing for nicer things or wanting to be one step higher on their corporate ladder. God may grant us this or that in our work, but it will mean nothing compared to Him (John 4:34). And loving God that way is what will lead us to make good decisions about where to work, and what to do with the money and influence we gain along the way.
4. Aspires to baffle the world
Employees and employers, “I beseech you, each of you, in spiritual worship, offer your body as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God” (Rom 12:1). Our life—our entire life, including our work—is an act of worship. As? “Do not be conformed to the present world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom 12:2). Will we work conforming to this world or in a way that baffles it? Followers of Jesus are filled with the Spirit and should be noticeably different from people who do not know or love our Lord. When the core reality of our life changes, there must be changes in us. We want the world to be so baffled by the way we live, work, and spend that it has to ask us why we hope in Christ (1P 3:15).
5. Aspire to provide for yourself and your family
This is natural for most. We all need to eat, so we all need to work. Even within the safety and generosity of the church, Paul said, “Whoever does not want to work must not eat either” (2Thes 3:10). God has created a world in which we survive by making tangible and exchangeable contributions to society. We live by faith, and we eat by work. Almost everyone takes this for granted, but people who love God and fear money might overlook this. We serve a God who provides (Lk 11:10-13; James 1:17), and we reflect the generosity of His love when we provide for those entrusted to us. Things like planning, budgeting, and saving are not acts without faith. In fact, that is the kind of stewardship that greatly glorifies God when done out of love for Him and our (future) families. It is important to say that this will not always be related to finances. Parents must provide many other things for each other and their children. Providing spiritually and emotionally may even mean putting aside another income or promotion, at least for a season. The principle is to provide for our own, as best we can, so that we point to God's provision for us in Jesus.
6. Aspires to overabundate for others
For the glory of God, we should aim to provide for our own, but it shouldn't end there. God has many other purposes for our money than just our food, rent, and gas. “Let him who stole steal no more, but let him work honestly with his hands so that he may have something to share with those in need” (Eph 4:28). Paul did not say “lest I need to steal.” No, godly work doesn't just involve me. Professions that are truly Christian, regardless of the field of work, meet the needs of others. Singles can usually be even more generous, because they are only paying one person's bills. The promise Jesus made to us is: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). We are foolish to think that we will receive blessings by keeping everything we earn. Jesus promises that we will be better off—much better off—when we stop hoarding for ourselves and freely give of ours to others. So we must pray (and interview, negotiate, and sign contracts) with this goal in mind—to regularly and radically share with others everything we have and what we earn (1Ti 6:18).
7. Aspires to edify and protect the church
God saves the world through the church (Eph 3:10). It is His only means of carrying the gospel message to every workplace and every nation in the world. There is no plan B, some undiscovered strategy that could one day replace the church. And our victory through the church is certain (Mt 16:18), so nothing we invest in it will be in vain. All our work must contribute to that great cause. The church is a body made up of many members who are dependent on each other, functioning as eyes and hands and feet (1Co 12:12-26). If we are following Jesus, we are part of that body. The question is whether we will be an active and healthy member. If we are not, the church will suffer. You will lack the unique gifts God has given us to serve Him. It can be teaching, advising, managing finances, welcoming, cooking, driving a vehicle or a thousand other things. We must consider the ways in which our 100,000 hours could be of greater blessing to the local church. Amazingly, the most important work of the church is not done by the pastors (those called to ministry vocationally), but by the members. Pastors are there to “equip God's people for the work of service, to build up the body of Christ” (Eph 4:12). Pastors train us for ministry, and that implies that we must be just as involved in the mission as those who are financially supported by the church. That makes the work of everyone who loves Jesus, even if they are not vocationally in the ministry, incredibly strategic for the Kingdom.
8. Aspire to work for what lasts
Keep in mind that this life is short and that everything not done for Christ will be in vain. Fight against the false idea that we have to build and accumulate in this world. Jesus said: “Do not store up treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in to steal. Rather, store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust eat away, nor do thieves break in to steal” (Mt 6:19-20). This doesn't necessarily mean doing something explicitly Christian. It does mean that things done for selfish and sinful reasons will not last. We want the investments we make with our time, money, creativity, and talents—with our single lives and our work—to be investments that last for eternity, and they will be when they tell the world about our God.
100,000 opportunities
If those eight goals are our goals, then there are 100,000 (and more) good ways to spend our 100,000 hours, and in most of them we will not be compensated for proclaiming Christ. Christian vocational ministry is not the only option. In fact, for most of us, the ministry that will most exalt Jesus will not be “the ministry.” Perhaps your 100,000 hours will meet strategic ministry needs, or train you to serve the church in unique ways (technology, communications, maintenance, and more), or surround you with people who have not yet believed with whom you can share the gospel of a more natural way. Be open to a specific call from God toward vocational ministry, but do not think that it is the only way to have an effective, faithful and fruitful ministry. Whether we write sermons on a desk, sell desks, assemble desks, source lumber, or train the carpenter's children to be godly women and men, God can use singles in unique and powerful ways to bring about Your greatest mission in the world.
Excerpted from the book "Single for Now" by Marshall Segal
