Finding God at Work

Chris and Katie wrap up the Divine Disappointments series by sharing how God has brought them through a season of desolation and confusion into a place of hope and anticipation. In the Joseph story, the dream came true in a most unexpected way, working out God's saving purposes not just for Joseph and his family, but for the whole world. For Chris and Katie, even though the future is unknown, it's...

Chris and Katie continue to reflect on how the life of Joseph provides a paradigm for their own "journey through the desert" of work and health challenges. Joseph's dream already looked dead when he was sold into slavery in Egypt, but it "died again" when he was imprisoned on false charges. Similarly, even after a significant health crisis and a season of real healing, Chris and Katie realized tha...

Chris and Katie continue to reflect on the life of Joseph and their own vocational journey. Joseph's dream looked dead when he was sold into slavery in Egypt. Chris's dreams of pastoral ministry and fatherhood looked dead in the middle of a physical, mental, and spiritual health crisis for Katie. For Katie, life was simply falling apart. Yet in the middle of all that, the Lord showed great mercy....

To wrap up our Divine Disappointments series, we're doing a four-episode look at the life of Joseph in the book of Genesis, with Chris (and Katie!) sharing how their own vocational journey has reflected the pattern we see there: Dream Death of the Dream Double Death of the Dream Resurrection Sometimes, our dream has to die before it can come to life in God's time. Take the course at FindingGodAtWo...

Chris interviews Ben Kraker about his vocational journey from youth ministry to tech sales to managed IT and app development, and how he grew closer to God through each shift. His work with youth, while fruitful, grew out of a sense of obligation to others' expectations. Eventually, he ended up on empty: disillusioned and driftless. But then, after shifting to a "secular" career, Ben discovered sp...

Every industry has negative externalities—some way that in the course of getting business done, the world around the business is negatively affected. As disciples of Jesus, how do we make sense of our responsibility in regards to the negative externalities of the industries where we work? Take the course at FindingGodAtWork.org . Sources: Psalm 15 (ESV) Esther 7:3-4 (ESV) Timothy Keller with Kathe...

Sometimes the most stressful part of work is how little it pays. It can feel like you're doing everything you know how to do, and you still come up short. When that's your situation, it's easy to become resentful. But even when you feel like you have your back against the wall, there's an alternative to resentment. Jesus shows us a different way. Take the course at FindingGodAtWork.org . Sources:...

Chris interviews Evelea Solgos about her harrowing first year working as a teacher, why she stuck it out even though it wasn't what she signed up for, and what she learned about herself through the process. After moving on from that role, with the help of a Christian therapist, Evelea learned how to discern God's presence in that experience even after-the-fact. She shares, "It's not too late. Even...

Henri Nouwen calls burnout "a convenient psychological translation for a spiritual death." Sometimes work feels more like death than life. When you're facing burnout at work, what can you do? How can you access the spiritual resources that Jesus offers in that dark place? Take the course at FindingGodAtWork.org . Quadrants Visual: Healthy and Unhealthy Activation at Work Sources: Ephesians 1:18-20...

Work isn't always bursting with excitement. Is there a way to find meaning in the boring moments? Take the course at FindingGodAtWork.org . Quadrants Visual: Healthy and Unhealthy Activation at Work Sources: Ephesians 5:15-16 (NIV, KJV) Colossians 3:23 (NIV) Wilmar B. Schaufeli and Marisa Salanova, "Burnout, Boredom and Engagement in the Workplace" in An Introduction to Contemporary Work Psycholog...

Chris interviews Dr. Luke Bobo about his 2019 book, Race, Economics, and Apologetics: Is There a Connection? . Hear about how previous policies like redlining and restrictive covenants continue to affect the economy today, how you can respond if you're facing racial discrimination in the workplace, and how we can offer our workplaces an "embodied apologetic." Luke Bobo (PhD, University of Missouri...

Sometimes work feels pointless. We get stuck in the comparison/competition trap, never achieving enough to be content. We get enslaved to our work, sacrificing everything else that matters. We end up in jobs that are dehumanizing, treating us more like machines than human beings. It's all so empty. What does Jesus invite us into when work is like that? Take the course at FindingGodAtWork.org . Sou...

One of the most painful forms of disappointment at work is disappointment in a leader. Sometimes you're excited to work for a specific team or a specific organization, but your boss or your boss's boss or a different leader in the organization isn't the person who you thought they were. How can we, as disciples of Jesus, meet the Lord when we're disillusioned about a leader we respected? Take the...

Chris interviews Drew Boa about his new book, Outgrow Porn: Find Lasting Freedom Without Fighting an Exhausting Battle . We come to work as whole human beings: mind, body, and soul. That includes our sexuality, which can sometimes "interrupt" our work day unexpectedly. Drew shares how to respond in a healthy way when that happens, why sexual development is like surfing, and the way our "origin sto...

Firing someone is always an instance of disappointment, right? Whether you hired that person or someone else did, somebody had hopes that this person would thrive in their role, that it would be good for them and good for the organization. It's tough to do firing well. But when you have the responsibility to hire and fire, the Christian thing to do is not to avoid firing people, but rather to take...

Chris interviews Clare VanderWeele about her decision to leave a relatively cushy gig as a marketing executive in order to become a birth doula and to homeschool her children. Hear how Clare began to discern God's voice calling her into something that, at the time, felt logistically and financially impossible. With the help of her spiritual director and church community, Clare and her family reali...

What can you do when the fire has gone out in your career? When you're bruised by injustice or burned missed opportunity, it can feel like the deck is stacked against you. Sometimes it's easier to resign yourself to the situation than to keep fighting for an ever-more-elusive dream. But when we find ourselves feeling resigned about our career, it may be an opportunity for a renewed experience of G...

"This isn't what I signed up for." Have you ever had that thought about your career? When our careers don't go the way we dreamed or planned, it's easy to slip into bitterness, resentment, and anger. But those feelings can also be a clue, a starting point rather than an ending point. As we get honest with ourselves and with God about our unmet expectations and desires, it can lead to real spiritua...

Chris interviews Dr. Meryl Herr about her new book, When Work Hurts: Building Resilience When You're Beat Up or Burnt Out . Hear about how the biblical story of Nehemiah gives us a paradigm for faithfulness in a toxic work environment, how our sense of calling can be a double-edged sword, and how to discern when it's time to leave. Meryl Herr (PhD, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School) owns and run...

It's so frustrating to be underestimated by your boss. It can be demoralizing, even humiliating. But there's also spiritual opportunity there: opportunity for Christ-like self-advocacy, and for letting love overcome resentment. Sources: Romans 12:16-24 (NIV) Acts 24 (NIV) u/Dangerous_Sundae3138, "How to deal with a boss who is constantly putting you and your skillset/experience down?" r/ManagedByN...

Our careers don't always keep pace with our capacities. After years of developing a specific skillset, we sometimes find ourselves stuck in a job that doesn't use it. Or, as we're growing, we just don't get the chance that we know we're ready for. When you're in that situation, you feel the hit in your finances, your reputation, and your sense of vocation. But could that painful place also be a pl...

Losing your job can be one of the most miserable experiences of adult life. But could it also be a moment of spiritual opportunity? Sources: Romans 12:15 (NIV) Proverbs 22:29 (NIV) Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 (NIV) Romans 12:3 (NIV) Mathew 6:25-27 (NIV) Luke 15:28-32 (NIV) Note: In the podcast episode itself I accidentally say "Romans 12:12" instead of "Romans 12:15" and "Matthew 5" instead of "Matthew 6...

We kick off a new series with this episode— Divine Disappointments: Facing Pain and Sorrow at Work .   Work isn't just hard. Often, it hurts.   It hurts when we're stuck in toxic workplaces, when we're fired or laid off, when we struggle with burnout, when we get overlooked, when we fail, when we face loss of reputation.   It hurts when your career doesn't go the way you dreamed it would.   But yo...

If you want to engage the conversation about faith and politics more deeply, check out these thinkers and leaders. Sources: Proverbs 3:33-34 (ESV) Bonnie Kristian, Staff Editor at Christianity Today Michael Wear, Founder, President and CEO of the Center for Christianity and Public Life Justin Giboney, Founder and President of the AND Campaign Matthew Soerens, VP of Advocacy and Policy at World Rel...

Can you articulate a commitment to a Gospel value while also charitably presenting the political viewpoint that is opposite to your own?   Food insecurity—lack of consistent access to the food needed to live a healthy and active life—is a serious issue, even here in the United States. It's also an issue that stirs us as disciples of Jesus; caring for those who don't have the food they need is an i...