In Part 1 I talked about what makes a job a career vs something that just makes us money. I argued that it wasn't the time we put into it or the upward potential, instead it was our sense of calling. In part two I want to dive into what the Bible has to say about this calling and how our mindset can be the difference between aligning with God’s promises and failure. I haven’t seen much writing on this aspect of a business but I believe it is hugely important because as Christians we have an additional framework that we operate in. The Spiritual framework.
The Spiritual framework
The mindset behind the success or failure of a business endeavor should be twofold from a Christian perspective. First is the financial success, will our work pay off in actual money that supports our family? For non-Christians, this is the only thing that matters, which is why many people will do anything for success. However, for Christians, there is a second (and I would argue more important) part, and that is the spiritual side. Spiritual success is determined by the final state of our heart regardless of success or failure on the money side. It sounds strange, but our business aspirations could fail miserably and the experience could still be a spiritual success. In contrast, we could also make millions and still fail on the spiritual side of this equation. The question for us to answer then becomes; how do we reconcile these two spheres in a world that all but demands they be separate?
It boils down to Faith
Every choice we make in life is based on a worldview. While this worldview is different for everyone, ultimately we can boil it down to a faith question. Do you live and act based on a desire for your own glory, or are you trusting God and seeking to glorify Him? The Bible is abundantly clear on this point. God is all powerful and deserves all the glory. He won't stand for others to claim what is His, period end of story. The good news comes when we look at what He promises to do with His power. In verse after verse, we see that He is actively looking for people who are trusting Him so that he can bless them! Just think of the stories of Abraham, Joshua, David, Gideon, Daniel, and Job. As well as verses like these:
Matthew 6:25-33“….Therefore, do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Proverbs 16:3 Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.
Colossians 3:23 Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,
Proverbs 13:4 The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.
It’s clear if your faith is in God, He has the power AND the desire to bless everything you do in His name. This is astounding, that the all powerful God works on behalf of those who trust Him! When we understand this is what the Bible is saying, the first question we have is often:
What’s the catch?
We may agree with all this in theory, and still question why so much can seemingly go wrong with our life and business. The hard truth is; no-one knows the plans of God. While this explanation provides little comfort when our business plans fail, if we can keep in mind that God is working for our good in everything we do for Him we can still find hope and joy in undesirable circumstances. Succeeding in business isn't easy, so we must decide before we dive in how we will answer some important questions. Will we trust God and His promises through rough times, or will we give up and try and do things by our own strength? There can be money success in both options, but only one can lead to spiritual growth as well.
So what does the Bible actually say?
Let's get this straight at the beginning, if you are hoping to simply read your Bible for a few days and find or affirm your calling, then you will be sadly let down. Nowhere does the Bible tell us that we should pursue one career over another.
Instead, we are given general principles and are left to work out many of the details on our own. Below are 3 of these principles I found helpful as I have started searching for the career I want.
Number 1: Be realistic
The problem many potential entrepreneurs face is the disconnect between their passions and the ability to turn those passions into a career. we may be passionate about ____(fill in the blank), but are we able to overcome the obstacles we would face trying to turn it into a career? Facing this question at the start can save us heartache in the end. In Luke 14:28 to 30 Jesus reminds us to determine what we can accomplish before we get involved in a project, lest we fail and look like fools. He was speaking about the cost of following him, but the saying is helpful in our career discussion as well. Paul affirms this in Romans 12:3 when he tells us "do not think of yourself more highly than you ought..." The lesson for us is this: we must make a plan, count the cost and determine if we can succeed.
Honesty at this stage of our pursuit can save us struggles and disappointment later on. This is also a great place to seek others wisdom to see if we are overestimating your abilities, or if a few tweaks are in order to make our dream achievable. Whatever we do, remember that there must be a healthy balance of optimism coupled with wisdom and not just a blind faith that God will simply give us everything we want.
optimism + wisdom + perseverance = Success
Number 2: God will bless a goal that honors Him
The Bible constantly reminds us that if we trust God, He will guide our steps. There are three passages I found particularly encouraging concerning this point.
The first was Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
The second was Psalm 32:8
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you.
Finally, Psalm 1 is also a great verse to remember. In this, we are told that if God's word is our delight then we will "prosper in all that we do!"
These passages are encouraging because of the scope they entail. It’s not as if we must be pastors and then God will make our paths straight, instead, as long as we honor God and look to him in our work He will guide us, counsel us and prosper us. It doesn't matter what we are trying to do, as long as it honors God. This is refreshing in this day and age because it's easy to think we are on our own, instead, we can remember this:
We don't have to have a spiritual career to have spiritual success in life. All we need to do is seek to honor God in everything we do. **
Number 3: While work is required, it can be a joy
Since the fall, man has been required to labor in order to achieve anything worthwhile. Just read Genesis 3:17:
Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil, you will eat food from it all the days of your life.
This truth doesn't mean that work has to be a burden, in fact, if we look a few verses before the fall in Genesis 2:15 we find this:
The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.
Remember, this was before the fall. Adam was working before sin entered the world. This truth should serve as a powerful reminder that work is a good thing! When I was a child I saw work as punishment, or a kind of necessary evil. But as I have grown up and had different jobs I have realized that work can be a joy. To accomplish something, to become skilled at a task can be exhilarating!
I believe this feeling of joy and accomplishment is a taste of the "work" that Adam had before sin and a taste of what heaven will be like. “How” you may ask? I think this joy is part of what Jesus' promises when he tells us to “taste and see that the Lord is good”. Work should be an avenue in which we glorify God and taste the goodness of his design and purpose for us in the world. So, while we can count on toil and work all our days on earth, we can also taste the joy that heaven has to offer in the success of our work.
Final Thoughts
What do you consider success? Retirement? A vacation home? A certain car? Whatever it is, our plan for success should not include the idea that we can make it and then stop working and just enjoy life. Work can take on many forms, but as 2 Thessalonians 3:10 reminds us, it should always be a part of our lives.
For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.
Businesses like lucky break and snuggies prove that you can turn almost anything into a success. So as I continue on my path it looks like this: I will seek counsel, make a plan, and try to be realistic with my goals. My aim is to Honor God and trust His promises as I prepare for and think about what I want to accomplish in life. And then I work at it as unto the Lord!
Do you ever think of your career in terms of what God has given you a passion for, do you ever think about what the Bible says about it?
In part 3 I explain how I took the thoughts from this blog and combined them with my calling from part 1. I will also look at the book the "4-hour work week" from Tim Ferris and break down the way ahead as I look to create the career I want!
**Note: While the Bible does not disconnect financial and spiritual successes, it does constantly remind us that spiritual success is what matters. As long as we focus on Trusting God he will bless us in every other area of our life. Remember that this is not a formula to try and abuse, we can't trust with actions only all the while desiring financial success. This is a false Gospel, instead, we must seek to honor God in everything including our business dealings and trust that He will be faithful in these promises.
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