This post is part of Patheos’ April Public Square, Global Care: Why We Need More Than One Earth Day in a Year. “So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over... Read more
The hope of Christians lies in Jesus’ work on the cross and his resurrection. What does the resurrection, which we celebrate during Easter, mean for one of the most consuming parts of our lives–our work? In his book The Heavenly Good of Earthly Work, Darrell Cosden points to the bodily resurrection of Jesus to propose that our work matters to God. He makes the following three points. 1. The resurrection affirms the goodness of the material world. After the resurrection, Jesus was... Read more
Our hearty congratulations to Mark Roberts, who was recently appointed executive director at the Fuller Seminary’s Max DePree Center for Leadership. In this role, Mark is responsible for the mission, strategic direction, and operations of the Center. He also provides resources for the Center’s work as the principal writer of the Life for Leaders daily devotional. We’re proud to note that Mark is also on the Theology of Work Project (TOW) Steering Committee. He was a chief contributor to the TOW articles on Galatians, Ephesians,... Read more
This post is part of a Patheos-wide symposium on the question “What good is religion?” Read other perspectives here. The Yale Center for Faith and Culture describes human flourishing as “the flourishing of individuals, communities, and our whole globe.” Human flourishing is at the heart of the good news of Christ. Because sin and death have been defeated, we have a connection with God that empowers us to live unselfishly. When we walk in adherence to Christ’s command to love our neighbors... Read more
It’s easy to blame church leaders for the failure of churches to resource their people better for ministry in daily life, particularly at work. Leaders are only partly to blame, though. For many church members, it may be a relief to leave the responsibility of ministry to the “professionals” and avoid accepting responsibility themselves. In churches where people are being equipped for work, new levels of conversation and partnership between church leaders and church members have been the precursor for... Read more
“What does God want me to do with my life?” is probably one of the questions pastors most frequently hear. A number of parachurch ministries exist to walk alongside people as they seek to answer this question. We spoke with Jeff Dunbar, director at Sons of Encouragement, a ministry that helps men discover their gifts, calling and passions. Our conversation was a reminder that our whole lives–every activity–whether we’re at work, spending time with family, doing laundry, playing soccer with... Read more
A recent Barna Group study found that while 86% of pastors reported preaching sermons that addressed work in the past year, over 70% of Christians still cannot envision how the work they do serves God. The gap could be an indicator of what we already know: it takes more than a sermon (or even sermons) to equip people to serve God in their everyday work.—One reason for this is that sermons alone may not address specific job-related questions and applications. For example,... Read more
Adapted from a talk by Katherine Leary Alsdorf at the Faith@Work Summit 2014 I left a long career in the tech industry and moved to New York City in 2002 to help Redeemer start a marketplace ministry. And I did that basically because I knew how much I needed it. I’d become a CEO and a Christian in the same month, and I didn’t know how to do either. By 2002, I’d spent a decade wrestling and trying to figure out how my... Read more
Kudos to the Wall Street Journal for its article “I Don’t Have a Job. I Have a Higher Calling” on Wednesday, Feb. 25. It’s an issue that deserves the attention. The Journal reports how companies including Travelzoo, Google, Kohl’s, Harley-Davidson, KPMG, and Juniper Networks try to attract, motivate and retain employees by appealing to “lofty mission statements.” Travelzoo, for example, highlights the higher purposes of travel such as helping someone get over the death of a loved one or meet... Read more
Guest Contributors: Al Erisman, Andy Mills, Christine Tan Walmart recently announced that it would raise pay for its hourly U.S. employees to at least $9 an hour by April. The announcement comes amidst years-old controversy over the pros and cons of raising the federal minimum wage, which is currently $7.25 an hour. Does this mean there is no need to talk about minimum wage laws? Does the Bible have anything to say about a minimum wage? Among the reasons employers... Read more
Theology of Work Project
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