Why Ask Why: 10 Reasons Your Work Matters to God

Work Through the Divine Lens: 3 Reasons

I am building a bridge, a bridge that crosses what I call the vocational divide–the disconnect between faith and work.  This gap results in a huge vacuum of meaning in the daily experience of work for most of us.  And so I launched a New Year with 10 reasons why our work matters to God.  Here are 3 reasons behind the series:

1. Most of us aren’t sure how our work matters to God and have relegated ourselves to 2^nd class citizenship when it comes to work (We believe the work of pastors and missionaries is more important than our own.)[1]
2. The church (and non profits) focus on getting people to invest their time, influence, talent, and money in their work. We rarely notice and validate the work of the majority in the “secular marketplace.”
3. Because work is where most of us will spend the majority of our waking hours over the course of our lifetimes.

10 Reasons Your Work Matters to God.   These 10 points link to 10 short posts that explore in more detail why our work matters to God.

1. Our work matters to God because God’s work is incomplete.
2. Our work matters to God because this world we live in is deeply damaged and requires fixing.
3. Provide-ence: Our work matters because God meets the needs of others through our work.
4. Our work matters to God because it is a space where God’s image leaks out of us.
5. Our work matters to God because he uses our work to shape our character.
6. Our work has always been part of God’s story—even at the “perfect beginning” and at the “perfected ending”.  
7. Our work matters to God because it is a space where we get glimpses of his glory.
8. Our work matters to God because it is an activity he will recognize and reward in eternity.
9. Our work matters to God as the means to many ends.
10. Our work matters to God because the work we do each day is part of the good work he has planned for our lives.

God Cares About Your Work

God cares about our work! The work we do each day is drenched with meaning to God. It matters to him even if we are underemployed, working a stepping stone job, or hoping to change careers.   So as you face the inventible frustrations and setbacks with job and career, arm yourself with this top 10 list and be encouraged, your work serves God’s purposes every day.  Your boss, your coworkers, your friends, your family, even your significant other may not appreciate the value of your work.   But…

Our work matters to God, therefore, our work matters!

[1] https://tifwe.org/more-pastors-are-preaching-about-faith-and-work/

This study concludes that 70% of church goers are unclear on how their work serves God and almost 80% believe the work of their pastor or priest is more important than their own.

pic:  by Bart Everson:  https://www.flickr.com/photos/editor/6698208975