Determining MY Career

Thank God, It’s Monday: (Part II)

 

DETERMINING MY CAREER

Philippians 4:19

19) And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

 James 1:5

5) If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

                 Are you willing to look at God as your ultimate boss? The Bible clearly declares that God promises to provide for all the needs of His children according to His great riches (Phil. 4:19). Therefore, when you have a job which allows you to earn money for your needs, you have to regard that job as a gift from God. It is His way to provide for you. If this is you mindset, I am convinced that you will have a better appreciation for your job and a greater desire to do your best in whatever responsibilities given to you because you are working for God and not for men. Now, these are basic truths I want to communicate to you throughout this series, Thank God, It’s Monday.

                Starting with the series last Sunday, we have established the fact that work is a part of God’s plan for us and it matters to Him how we are working.  Perhaps, one significant theological concept we should always take to heart is the truth that you can worship when you work.  Now, think about that for a second.  I’m not talking about singing the songs that we just did, or some of the stuff that we are doing in church, but I’m talking about taking God to work with you.  You see, that work can be a way for you to live out your faith. That work can actually draw you to God.  And the Bible says that work can be ministry.  Now, when I use the word ministry here, the word can simply mean to serve.

                Today, there are a lot of people who continually make a distinction between the secular and sacred work which doesn’t have a basis in the Bible.  What they are saying is if you work in the church, then you are in a sacred ministry; but, if your work is not church-related, then yours is secular. However, when you examine the words of the apostle Paul to the slaves in Colossians 3:23, the teaching is – all Christians are full-time ministers:

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men,

                 Evidently, whatever work you have, it could be a way for you to live your faith. God has called you in your workplace to serve Him.

This makes our theme this morning very important – Determining My Career.  It is a common concern whether we are exactly in the job that God wants us to have. There may be some of you who are thinking of leaving one career and doing another. Perhaps, for our college students, you would like to determine the direction of your career. I hope that studying the Bible together, we can address this issue. James 1:5 is very comforting Notice how this is read in the New Living Translation: 

If you need wisdom—if you want to know what God wants you to do—ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking.

There are several things in this verse that are interesting.  The first one says that God smiles or is happy at the opportunity to give you His wisdom.  God is not sitting up in Heaven saying—I’m not going to tell these guys anything.  I’m not going to share anything with them.  Let them go ahead and figure it out. Instead, when we say—God, give me Your wisdom.  That makes God happy.  He will gladly tell you.  And then it says—He will not resent your asking. .  If you look at this phrase in the Greek, it could be translated—He will not resent asking and asking and asking. God doesn’t get mad if you keep asking Him questions. So what we want to do today is look at four questions that you can ask God to determine your life’s work. I understand that these questions might not answer all your questions about the direction of your career, but I hope they can at least provide some guidance based on God’s word:

I               WHAT DOES GOD WANT?

                Of course, we would start here because of my assumption that you want to honor God with your life by doing what He wants for you.  Basically, life is not determined by what we want. Life is about what God wants. So the issue is—what does God want for my life?     

                One of the best selling corporate books today is written by Jim Collins, Good to Great. In this book, he basically hammered on the premise – Good is the enemy of great. Well, that’s a profound statement about life. When you think about it, there are so many people who have good ambitions, good dreams. But the real issue is not good versus bad; it’s about good versus great. Am I going to do the greatest thing with my life?  Is my life going to be a great life?  So don’t settle for good, settle for great.  And if you want a life that is going to be great, by definition, it has to be a life with God. God’s will is simply the best for your life. We often quote this verse:

Jeremiah 29:11

11) For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

                Honestly, if you evaluate our life, our average career life would last about 40 to 50 years. Compare this with the many thousands of years of history, life is pretty short. Therefore, if we really want this life to be significant or for us to be a significant person, our life should be used to make the biggest difference possible. So if we are going to have a best life, we have to have a life that is connected with God.  It’s about what God wants.

                James is giving us some interesting advice in James 4:13-15:  

Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that."

                Listening to these words of James, it is meaningless to plan our lives apart from God’s will? The issue is—if it’s the Lord’s will, then first of all, I’ll be alive, and then secondly, I’ll be able to do what He wants. So, is it God’s will or not? What does God want?

                To understand what God wants, we need to listen to God. What is God saying to you? As we have studied before, we said God communicates His will to us in four ways:

A.      Through the Bible (Psalm 119:105)

B.      Through the prompting of the Holy Spirit (John 16:13)

C.      Through God’s People (Prov. 12:15; Prov. 24:6)

D.      Through Circumstances (1 Corinthians 16:9)

If you desire to study this further, you would have to go back to the message dated February 11, 2007, “How Do I Know God’s Will in My Life.”

II             WHAT AM I GOOD AT?

                Another important question we need to ask ourselves with is – what are my skills or abilities? The difficulty of this question lies on our tendency to convince ourselves that we are better on certain things even if we are not. Many times it would help to get the opinions of other people to tell us what we are good at. So what do people say to you that you are good at?  In that, you have your opportunity.

                The reality is God has wired us to do some things really well. Not everything, nobody can do that, but you can do some things really well. Here is a perfect example:

Exodus 31:1-5

1) Then the Lord said to Moses,

2) "See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,

3) and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts—

4) to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze,

5) to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of craftsmanship.

                When God’s people were deciding to build a tabernacle, God has helped in identifying the skills of Bezalel who can work effectively in bringing the artistic designs to make the place more beautiful. Notice verse 3, “I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill.” In the same way, God has wired you for something. That’s what you have to discern.  And you know when you learn what you are good at and you do it, that’s the way of honoring God.

III            WHAT IS IN FRONT OF ME?

                The third question allows us to be conscious of our open doors, our opportunities. Some people keep waiting on their ship to come in, and it never does.  You have to do what is in front of you today.  I realize that this may appear contradictory with the idea of God’s will. How can these two work together? I believe that God can use the open doors in front of us as stepping stones in order to arrive in His perfect plan for us.

                We talk about this corporate ladder all the time. For a corporate job, they don’t put you at the top of the ladder right away.  You have to work your way up.  And you can work your way up faster, or you can work your way up slower, depending on how well you do with what is in front of you.  Sometimes, you have to start as an apprentice, or an understudy to someone else. Many times, we get so busy waiting on the perfect opportunity that we miss the opportunity to build ourselves and to grow ourselves.  The wise Solomon has a perfect advice in this area:

Ecclesiastes 9:10

10) Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.

 

                The words, “do it with all your might,” can simply mean do it well. So what’s in front of you? What can you do well right now?

                Now, if you keep doing your best not just for the paycheck, but most especially because you are seeking the approval of God. You in return will receive the best from God. Jesus taught this principle of sowing and reaping: Remember how the Master dealt with the faithful servants in the parable of the talents:

Matthew 25:21

21) "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'

                Obviously the principle here is clear - if you are faithful with a few things, you will be given more. Therefore, if you are faithful with what is in front of you, you will be given more.     

IV            WHAT IS MY LIFE’S MINISTRY?

                Earlier I said that ministry is to serve. So the last question we need to ask is—God, how can I serve the most number of people with my life? The truth of the matter is - If you want a significant life, it’s about serving others.  With that being said, for Christians, the last question of career is not—how much will I make, but it’s how many can I serve? 

                When Jesus was asked to elevate and explain what life is all about, He said—life is really about two things – love God and love people:

Matthew 22:37-39

37) Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'

38) This is the first and greatest commandment.

39) And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'

 

                Clearly, we should not just love God and love people in here on Sunday. You also need to carry this with you in your workplace. Let me go further. Jesus also reminded us in the Sermon on the Mount:

Matthew 5:13-14

13)  "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.

14) "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.

                To be the salt of the earth means that we are to be the people that bring out the good in the world, we are to point society in directions that are positive and directions that honor and esteem people. While to be the light of the world means we are to be representatives of Christ who honors God and loves people in our workplaces.  For the Christian, this is what life is all about.  I believe if you can answer the first three questions – What does God want? What am I good at? and What’s in front of me? You will have some guidance in what profession you can have. But by asking this fourth question – what is my life’s ministry? You would understand the purpose of you being there.  May you always be in the place where God wants you to be!