Five Rules of Spiritual Engagement at Work

For many of us, connecting business life with spiritual life is an elusive quest. Some, however, have been led to believe that just because I have been writing about this tricky subject over the last year or two, that, well, maybe I should have come up with some sort of advice for everyone by now.  Enough with the whining and complaining, they say. How about a solution every now and then? Fair enough.

A few days ago, one bold soul came forth and asked me quite directly just how exactly I handled this dilemma of integrating my faith in the workplace. As if I were an expert on the topic, right? Much to my surprise, I immediately rattled off a five-pronged strategy, delivered with a great deal of authority and confidence. Maybe I have actually learned a thing or two from all of this Blog-writing over the past couple of years.

So, without further delay, here are a few tricks I have learned to keep me spiritually engaged at work. Maybe they can help you too.

1. Know You God-Given Strengths.  At work, we unfortunately tend to obsess about the things we are not good at rather than relishing in our wonderfulness. Sure, we all have our foibles and blind spots, but we can gain far greater leverage for personal and spiritual growth at work by investing in our strengths rather than correcting those measly little weak spots. Try to pinpoint everything that you excel at, all of the special gifts and talents that you bring to your job that are inherently unique to you, and you alone (you are made in God’s image, after all). Here are some simple questions to help you identify what they are:  
   • What do you do in your career or every-day work life that gives you energy and enthusiasm?
   • What can you do in your company better than anyone else?
   • What aspect of your work brings you joy?

Hide it under a bushel? No! Get these answers nailed down, because this is your God-zone, and it is where you will be most spiritually effective on the job. Make a list, and bounce it off someone you trust for a reality check, and hopefully a little validation, too. Don’t be surprised at how awesomely brilliant God has made you. If you want some help with this, check out the book, “Strengths Finder 2.0,” by Tom Rath, which is a very resourceful, practical book to help you identify and tap in to your top strengths.

2. It’s Not About You.  No offense, but this may be the most difficult rule to accept. At least it was for me. I always saw my job as something that revolved around me: my salary, my performance, my political savvy, my personal brand-building, my next big promotion. But remember all those fabulous personal strengths you just identified? Well, guess what? You need to get over yourself and start pointing those talents in the direction of everyone else around you. Once you acknowledge that your unique abilities come from God, it’s only natural to start thinking about how God might want to use those gifts. Need a clue? It’s primarily going to be around helping other people. It could involve your employees, your co-workers, your Board, your shareholders, the wilting environment, the hungry children that you support from  your paycheck, the list could be endless. What is important here is the recognition that your spiritual growth will come more from an attitude of giving rather than what you think you should get out of your job.

3. Surrender to the Greater Purpose for Your Work. Now that your ego has been put safely back into its box, the scales just might fall off of your eyes as you start to see things from a more eternal, spiritual point of view. Framing your work around a higher, godly purpose is the beginning of subtle, but monumental shift that takes your focus off of you, and on to God working through you. Did you get that? Let me say that again. The focus comes off of you, and on God working through you. Think of yourself as a Tool. That’s right, you are God’s Tool.  How mind-altering is that, to think that God actually works through you in your job? It’s all about God tapping into your special gifts and capabilities to do good work, to help others, to do His will on earth as it is in heaven.  That may be as simple as being kind to the next person you speak to on the phone. Or, as drastic as totally restructuring your company around a fresh Vision, one that better engages people with the good your company offers to the world. Sure, making money and getting ahead in life is fun, but should they serve as the very foundation of your purpose for existence? Probably not. What if instead you could channel your ambitions towards serving a greater purpose than just, well, you? Wouldn’t that make God happy? Trust me, it will make you happy too. No – it will make you fulfilled.

I’ll admit that the idea of surrendering does not come naturally or easily to many of us hard-charging, get-it-done-now types of business folk. But the irony here is that by surrendering your purpose to God’s purpose, every action you take will be exponentially more effective and impactful in the long run. Now, every project, every task, every strategy or idea you generate, they are all part of a greater plan with a higher purpose

4. Get a Spiritual Partner. You need to share your experiences – with a mentor, a coach, a friend, a small group – someone else who you can share your work life with, and who will hold you accountable for your spiritual growth. Here is where we can also bring the complex, messy, gray areas and difficult circumstances to light – those that are not readily solved or understood on our own. We will innevitably face challenges that will cause stress and anxiety, threatening our connection to that greater spiritual purpose. It helps to have someone to count on for encouragement and advice.

I have a spiritual mentor by the name of Dr. Payne, who I have written about frequently in this Blog. Whenever I find myself at a spiritual dead-end, I unload my situation to Dr. Payne, asking “What should I do?”  He very calmly gives me another, higher perspective. Sometimes it is nothing more than saying, “I don’t know. We must wait for God to reveal His purpose. I will pray for you.”  There may not be an immediate solution, but God is faithful, and having a partner to soldier through the ups and downs of our careers keeps us faithful and hopeful on the journey.

5. Develop a Portfolio of Spiritual Practices. I like to think of spiritual practices like a diet: I need at least one substantial meal a day, and lots of snacks.  Those big meals are where you get most of your nourishment, and the snacks give you strength and energy throughout the day. I suggest you take a half-hour or so each day for a serious chill-sesh with Jesus. This typically might involve a quiet time of meditation, scripture reading, prayer, or journaling, something to get your spiritual self jump-started for the day. The classic book, “Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth” by Richard Foster is a great resource to get you started. The morning is generally the best time for me, and I know that you, too, can handle setting you alarm a half-hour earlier tomorrow.  Try it, you’ll see.

Then make a habit of incorporating one or two other spiritual practices into the rest of your work day. Look, this doesn’t mean that you have to burn incense in your office while you chant for fifteen minutes during lunch break. Kimberly Weichel says that these micro-meditations don’t even necessarily need to look spiritual. She writes an article at Pat Malloy’s Spirit Work Money Blog entitled, “Real Spiritual Practices,” where she say that these spiritual practices can take all sorts of shapes and sizes, and you need to find out what fits best for you. The point is to do something on a routine basis during the day that takes you out of the churn of the business activity and into a spiritual plane for a few minutes, to calm you, to reconnect with God, to help you think through your plans, your actions, your reactions.  It can be as simple as saying a brief prayer before each meeting. It can involve taking a walk. I like to get on the treadmill with my i-pod, or other times I will write to God for a few minutes. I also have a prayer card at my desk that I will use at different times throughout the day to remind me of God’s grace. It helps me to keep a spiritual perspective.

Whatever you choose, give yourself the benefit of nurturing your spirit with God’s spirit by developing some habits of spiritual practice. Surrender it all to God in prayer and attitude, and watch how it unfolds every day. Soon enough, you will start to see a difference.

Now that you know the Five Rules, it’s time to gear up and get spiritually engaged at work. No more excuses! Everyone around you needs it. They need you. They need to be reminded of God’s presence, through you.

Oh, and by the way, visiting the Shrinking the Camel Blog counts as a spiritual practice. Just so you know.