At the end of a long day of doing lawn work—mowing, weeding, doing the mulch, trimming the hedges, edging the flower gardens, cutting down dead tree branches—I love to sit on my back deck with a cold lemonade and look at the work of my hands. “Ahhhh… This is satisfying!” I am proud of my work. I see all that I’ve done, and it is good. We are created in the image of this working God – the God who finds satisfaction and... Read more
At the first “LJ Live” gathering for Redeeming Work in Chicago, Skye Jethani, of Leadership Journal invited Amy Sherman to share on the importance of work in the mission and everyday life of Christian faith. See a short (1:21) video in which Amy gives three reasons why faith and work conversations matter. http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/2014/june-online-only/three-reasons-why-faith-and-work-conversations.html Read more
We are not sent to a “place” but to be the “alternative” in the place we are. In his essay “Evangelism and Discipleship,” found in the book The Word That Redescribes the World: The Bible and Discipleship, Walter Brueggemann does an excellent job of giving the biblical, theological, and ecclesiastical realities of how God calls and sends his people. Evangelism and mission as going hand-in-hand: when God calls, he sends. But to where is God sending us? Brueggemann wisely points out, “It is clear... Read more
Ross Hastings, Associate Professor of Pastoral Theology at Regent College, offers this very helpful list of what it takes to contextualize the gospel in our postmodern culture, not only for the sake of evangelism, but also for the sake of the health of the local church and our teaching. ______ “With respect to the West in particular, what are the contextualizations required in a postmodern context? a humble posture of “faith seeking understanding,” which has always been theology at its... Read more
What is a leader? Is a leader someone who has all the answers? Is it someone with authority? Or, is it someone who makes the sacrifices necessary to empower and encourage others to engage and to work together toward common goals and solutions? Some of us have experienced people who think of themselves as leaders, who have an arrogant swagger, a desire for power, a smug know-it-all attitude. And we naturally find such an image unseemly. This is not the... Read more
A new person had joined the department. The director walked her around, introducing her to the various teams and people. And then she came back, visiting people in their offices and cubicles, seeking the answer to her most pressing question. “Where are the real power centers around here?” “What?” I responded, unsure if I had heard correctly. “Who are the power people in the department? I don’t have time to waste finding out on my own.” She was serious. I... Read more
How, through our vocations, we are the means through which God bestows blessings. Consider all the effort that goes into a humble peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich. It’s relatively easy for me – I simply go to the cupboard, open a couple jars, and slap two slices of bread together. But it’s so convenient only because hundreds, perhaps thousands, of others have faithfully fulfilled their personal vocations on my behalf. I can’t possibly list them all, but there are the growers of the... Read more
In this 18-minute video, Dr. Steven Garber asks, “What is the relationship of faith to vocation and then to culture?” and concludes that “Vocation is integral, not incidental, to the missio Dei (Latin for “the Mission of God.”) Video courtesy of QIdeas.org. Read more
In this 60-second video, Andy Crouch talks about Calling. He says that there are essentially two Callings that Christians have. 1. To bear witness to the very specific message that God has made himself known in Jesus. 2. To be human – that is, to bring about shalom (comprehensive flourishing). Humans are instrumental in bringing about Shalom when we get involved in tending the creation: caring for it, transforming it, exploring it, discovering what it’s capable of, and creating... Read more
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Who Am I? Rooting Your Identity in the Image of God
A few years ago, I wrote the cover article for Comment Magazine’s annual “Making the Most of College” issue. While it is written to college students, the principles of how the image of God provides our identity in our work is applicable to everyone. By special arrangement with Cardus, I’ve been given permission to provide this to our readers here at Reintegrate. Originally in Comment Magazine, September 2008, published by Cardus. Read more