Markets & Morality from a Biblical Perspective, Part Three – By Hugh Whelchel

Yesterday we looked at biblical principles found in the Four-Chapter Gospel — principles that impact how we approach economics. A failure to understand this connection is one reason Christians do not see any relationship between biblical and economic principles.

As I suggested yesterday, there is another reason Christians do not make the connection between markets and morality.

The second reason that Christians mistakenly believe free markets must be immoral and at odds with Christian values is that they do not really understand free markets. Free enterprise is an economic system whereby wealth and the means for creating wealth are privately-controlled and owned. Adam Smith referred to it as a system of natural liberty.

Free enterprise does not occur from top-down design, but rather it is an informal system that emerges from human exchange fueled by self-interest. It is ongoing trade in which an individual or individuals are free to create and operate businesses for profit with minimal governmental interference.

In free market economies, the government provides an institutional setting for the free exchange among market participants by upholding the rule of law which protects the right to own and transfer property.

In 1776, Adam Smith was one of the first authors to specifically write about free enterprise with the publication of his book An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. He argued that the wealth of nations could be increased by allowing the individual to seek his own self-interest, and by removing governmental control over the economy. He reasoned that this theory rested on three major principles:

1. People are motivated by self-interest.

Based upon his observation of human nature, Smith concluded that people are motivated by self-interest. He wrote,

It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest.

Smith went on to say that “neither intends to promote the public interest,” yet each is “led by an invisible hand to promote an end that was not part of [his] intention.” Free markets, then, help mitigate greed by encouraging us to serve others as part of our broader self-interest.

2. Property rights are important. 

Adam Smith recognized the importance of private property. Property should not be held in common, but owned and freely traded in a free market system. Profits generated from the use and exchange of private property rights provide the mechanism that drives economic growth.

3. Limited government is essential.

Adam Smith believed that for free markets to work, it was necessary to minimize the role of government. He argued that we should decrease the role of government and increase the role of the free market.

Bringing clarity to this misunderstanding about the definition of markets is an important step in answering questions about markets and morality.

I’d like to end with a brief biblical definition of markets offered by Dr. Anne Bradley in a previous post:

…free enterprise…It means being free to choose your vocation, being free to understand your calling and pursue it with integrity. This is precisely how we are created – as unique individuals with a purposeful contribution to make. There is inherent morality in free enterprise in that it provides us a greater opportunity to contribute to Christ’s Kingdom, in the here and now. We may not understand how we are making the contribution, but we are. We are serving others through our work.

In my next post I will look at the economic principles found in the story of creation and the Garden of Eden.

[This article was taken from the Institute for Faith, Work and Economics April 9, 2013 daily blog found at: http://blog.tifwe.org/markets-morality-from-a-biblical-perspective-part-three/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=810088&utm_campaign=0]

Markets & Morality from a Biblical Perspective, Part Two – By Hugh Wehlchel

Before we can even ask how things might go wrong, we must first explain how they could ever go right.

- Friedrich Hayek

Last week we began exploring the relationship between markets and morality. One big question on people’s minds is, “are markets and morality at odds?”

Before we start, it is important to note that the Bible is not an economics textbook. Jesus wasn’t a capitalist or a socialist.

Yet there are fundamental biblical principles that should be followed when applying Scripture to our lives, and that includes how we approach economic issues. Our aim with this series is to outline these biblical principles, and examine how closely free markets align with these foundational concepts.

Few Christians see any alignment at all. The Public Religion Research Institute reported in a recent survey that a plurality of American Christians believe that the free market system is inconsistent with Christian values.

Consider the following from their report:

Overall more Americans believe that Christian values are at odds with capitalism and the free market than believe they are compatible. This pattern also holds among Christians. Among Christians in the U.S., only 38% believe that capitalism and free market are consistent with Christian values while 46% believe the two are at odds. 

This should not come as a surprise given the constant refrain from the press and some libertarian circles that greed and selfishness are the primary drivers of capitalism. Christians know the Bible teaches that greed and selfishness are sin. Free enterprise must be immoral and at odds with Christian values, right?

While there are a variety of reasons for such a fundamental misunderstanding, two stand out. Today I’ll cover the first: many Christians do not see the plethora of economic principles articulated in the meta-narrative of the Bible known as the Four-Chapter Gospel. They do not understand what the Bible teaches about economics.

Amy Sherman and James Skillen write,

Careful thinking about economics begins with focus on the Bible’s big story. A biblical perspective on economic life doesn’t come from random proof-texting. Rather, it is rooted in queries about God’s intentions for his people and all he has made.

Couching our queries within the framework of the Four-Chapter Gospel keeps us from cutting and pasting Bible verses at random. So what economic principles does the Four-Chapter Gospel articulate? Sherman and Skillen offer the following:

• The creation narrative reveals our fundamental identity as stewards of all God has made.

• The Law spells out God’s passion for a flourishing community life in which society’s most vulnerable members are treated with dignity and compassion.

• The prophets articulate God’s hatred of economic injustice.

• The Gospels reveal Jesus Christ talking frequently about money and possessions, and sloth and diligence.

• The Epistles paint pictures of Christians loving the poor, and sharing material possessions sacrificially and joyfully.

• Revelation speaks of a new heaven and new earth in which work and cultural creativity will be redeemed, stewardship will be expanded, poverty will be eliminated, and every person will rest secure under his own vine and fig tree.

In future posts we hope to look at each of these points in turn. To truly engage these issues from a Christian perspective, we need to first return to Scripture, taking its economic principles and comparing them with the underlying principles of the free market.

Before getting there, though, there is one more misunderstanding to clear up. The second misunderstanding Christians have about the relationship between markets and morality is the failure to properly define and articulate what constitutes a “market.” More on that tomorrow.

[This article was taken from the Institute for Faith, Work and Economics' April 8, 2013 blog at: http://blog.tifwe.org/markets-morality-from-a-biblical-perspective-part-two/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=810088&utm_campaign=0]

Social Media and the Sermon on the Mount – By Michael St. Pierre

Imagine for a second that you are at the Galilean hillside with 150 others. It’s a hot and dry day with a blazing Middle Eastern sun. Up ahead you see a slightly more organized body of people, apparently listening to a preacher. You reach the crowd and realize that this is not just any sermon. The man in the center is Jesus, and he is talking about the poor in spirit and the need for compassion.

Unfortunately, you and a few others in the crowd are doing what often happens when someone at the front of the room is speaking: You’re only half-listening. Jesus has one ear while social media has the other.

You send out a tweet that says, “I’m here at the #sermononthemount for epic speech by @Jesus. Peace out!”

The lady next to you is updating her Pinterest page with a photo of Peter the Apostle’s satchel while the pre-teens next to her are sharing a photo of the crowd via Instagram. Joe, who is always thinking of career advancement, updates his LinkedIn profile to include the continuing education credits received from being present at the Sermon on the Mount. A GTD (Getting Things Done) productivity enthusiast one row over from you punches in several new to-do items in his iPhone so as to adequately follow up from today’s event.

Sound absurd? Not so much when you consider how most people allocate their attention in today’s hectic world. Most of us give partial attention to people and events while social media tug at us, hinting that we ought to be constantly updating our Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIN accounts.

In light of the recent election of Pope Francis, during which cell phones were forbidden to cardinals throughout the process, more companies are banning cell phones during meetings altogether. I can only imagine how Jesus would feel, giving arguably his most important speech, only to see a man in the back of the crowd glancing down at an incoming text.

Now fast track to 2013, when meeting facilitators are continually given only partial attention from attendees who are constantly updating their smartphones.

Social media, as valuable as they are, become a detriment to our faith when they leak into our spiritual lives. If you find the Bible boring and can’t sit in silence (without a glowing screen in front of you) for five minutes at a time, you might be too plugged in. There is another, more subtle indicator that your spiritual life is being negatively impacted by social media: if you are tempted to broadcast every spiritual moment and insight.  Take a breath and slow things down.

Let’s remember that Jesus taught about moderation, privacy and the spiritual life way back when. In Matthew 6:6 he says, “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”

Some moments with God are best left unpublished, savored only by the heart.

Work, meaningful work, is like that. It requires us to be fully present and then good things follow. As missionary Jim Elliot (1927-1956) famously said, “Wherever you are, be all there.”

[Taken From the May 1, 2013 "The High Callings" Every DayCconversations About Work at:  http://www.thehighcalling.org/work/social-media-and-sermon-mount]

Do Markets Promote the Worst Kinds of Behavior? By Dr. Paul A. Cleveland

In the discussion of markets and morality, objections to free markets often center around values and character. Art Lindsley recently wrote about the need for Christians of character to be involved in culture, and that need is just as great within markets. Why?

Critics of free enterprise often argue that it promotes the worst kind of human behavior, and  it must be rejected if moral human action is to prevail. They argue that free enterprise promotes jealousy, envy, and greed.

In their opinion, life on this planet would be better served if we substituted another means of control over the production and distribution of economic goods. The assumption is that the collectivization of economic life would promote the highest level of virtuous living amongst one another.

Is this assumption correct?

First, it must be noted that jealousy, envy, and greed are all evidence of the inherent sinful passions present in every human heart. They are not spawned by economic activity. To assume that these vices are the outgrowth of economic action displays ignorance of what constitutes a free market.

A free market is an institutional arrangement of private property and voluntary trade. It’s also a means whereby we harness our God-given resources – both natural resources and our time, talent, and creativity – and use them for the good of others. A free market provide us with a chance to “seek the peace and prosperity” of our communities, as the prophet Jeremiah exhorts in Jeremiah 29.

The only way to succeed in such an economic environment is by continually serving your customers with goods and services that they value more than what they must give up to get them. One of the first principles of economic exchange is the realization that there are mutual gains from trade. Otherwise, no trade would develop in the first place. If you want to succeed, you have to serve the other person by offering them something they value.

Consider for a moment a world where you had to produce all the goods and services you consumed solely by your own efforts without the benefit of another person. A casual consideration of such a world reveals that we are great beneficiaries of economic exchange and voluntary trade.

Activities as simple as making a ham sandwich for lunch would be impossible if it all depended on you. You would have to:

• Find the pig

• Kill the pig

• Prep the pig

• Cure the ham

• And slice it.

To accomplish these tasks would require a wide variety of tools and ingredients you would also have to produce yourself. The amount of labor needed to complete every task would take years.

Yet for the fraction of an hour of your labor, someone is willing to make a sandwich for you. This is evidenced by the fact that Subway advertises foot-long sandwiches for five dollars. Not only that, but everyone who had a hand in the labor needed to produce your sandwich did their work voluntarily. No one forced them to do what they did. They voluntarily chose to put their God-given energy, talent, and time to use.

This process is like that outlined in the video, I, Smartphone, which outlines how free markets harness our talents and creativity to serve one another across the globe.

When we begin to think about the question of markets and morality in these terms, what would be immoral and reprehensible would be a situation where some people forced other people to do certain things for them or else be punished in some way. God created us each with a unique set of gifts, and if we are to discover and develop these gifts within the context of our vocations, we need the freedom and opportunity to do just that.

[Taken from the April 5, 2013 Institute for Faith, Work and Economics blog at:

http://blog.tifwe.org/do-markets-promote-the-worst-kinds-of-behavior/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=810088&utm_campaign=0]

Leaders Are More Than Labels

We hear people say I am ADD or I am OCD.  I often think “that’s a reason, not an excuse”.  I was reading an article on the Leadership tab of The High Calling web site and found an article which talks about the effect of using labels as leaders.  Below is an excerpt from this article.

“We’ve too often turned what earlier generations would have just called eccentricity into a pathology… We need to be careful with labels and the ways in which we toss them around.”—L. Gregory Jones, Ph.D.

“I think we over-diagnose today. … We’ve too often turned what earlier generations would have just called eccentricity into a pathology,” said L. Gregory Jones, strategic director for the Laity Lodge Leadership Initiative and professor of theology at Duke Divinity School. “We need to be careful with labels and the ways in which we toss them around that sometimes lead to negative judgments. … We have ways we label and identify people that are counter-productive.”

Ironically, over-diagnosis has made it more difficult for the complexity of people’s gifts to be appreciated, Jones said. This is partly due to organizational concerns about having to make accommodations mandated by the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The capacity to enter into other people’s experience is a key determinant in whether or not someone with a particular tendency can succeed as a leader, Jones said. “We have to shift our conception of what a good leader is away from the kind of charismatic, telegenic person to a much richer and deeper conception that would be, in Christian terms, associated with a cruciform life and the ability to acknowledge suffering’s role in faithful living and leadership.”

Organizations tend not to ask important questions that can guide a more thoughtful evaluation of a person’s potential, said Jones. “What you want is to be assessing someone’s emotional intelligence and social intelligence at the hiring point, which is one of the places where we tend not to look at it. ..We tend to look to see if somebody is charismatic and exciting and engaging. And so, we end up with a lot of buyer’s remorse because we idealize what looks like a great shop window purchase and fail to note that the person has these pathologies in problematic ways.”

[Excerpt from "Leading From Psychological Brokenness" by Christine A. Scheller on The High Calling website April 17, 2013]

http://www.thehighcalling.org/leadership/psychological-pathologies-leadership#.UXv3MLWG3HR

Power of Perspective by Howard E. Butt, Jr.

A friend of mine was dissatisfied with his job and the company he worked for. He felt mistreated, underused . . . and his anger simmered. But that was years ago. Today my friend works for the same company—even has the same job—but he loves it.

What made the difference? One conversation. A woman asked him whom he prayed for most—himself or other people? His answer revealed extreme self-centeredness, and he disliked that even more. It may sound minor, but a change in perspective transformed his life.

Nothing feels so permanent or changes so quickly as an attitude. When attitudes change, usually, so do circumstances. It’s the amazing power of our perspectives in the high calling of our daily work.

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.

(Ps. 139:23-24)

[This article by Howard Butt, Jr., of Laity Lodge. was posted March 31, 2013 on The High Calling web site:

http://www.thehighcalling.org/audio/attitude/power-perspective

Stop talking about gratitude

Yes, that’s what I said. Stop talking about gratitude. It seems, sometimes, that gratitude is the new best thing and that all of us are supposed to make long lists of the multitude of things we are grateful for.

Fresh coffee

Hot showers

Homemade whatever

The joys of family life

Our fabulous church

And it is quite true that we too easily forget to be mindful and grateful.

But (you knew that “but” was coming) my patience runs short with folks who insist on turning everything into a blessing.

Squirrels emptying out the bird feeder in 3 minutes flat. How amusing to watch.

Precious little feet tracking mud into the house.

The power is out for the third day and we are having wonderful family bonding time in front of the fireplace.

Some days my list would be more along the lines of:

More #!@ snow. But eventually it stops.Right.  Please stop. Please.

I remember life before this head cold that won’t leave.

I’m grateful this day is over.

I’m glad they finally left.

It could, I suppose, be worse, maybe.

When I worked as an ER vet, I was known to say, “Every silver lining has a cloud.”  To borrow Anne Lamont’s phrase, I am a crabby optimist. * However, usually I see the glass as half full. Really I do.

But I also acknowledge that some days the glass is empty. Some days the glass gets knocked over and spills onto your lap… on your best pair of pants… when you can’t get home to change.

I don’t feel compelled to turn all of life’s events into some sort of blessing or something to be grateful for. It’s just a question of honesty for me. It seems better to just name it and claim it. For me and my family it is better if I just say, “ I’ve had a bad day and I’m in a bad mood and I’m sorry you have to live in the same house with me right now. I’ll be better tomorrow, perhaps (but don’t count on it) even later today.”

I think it’s all right to sing the blues. The Biblical term for that is lament.

By the rivers of Babylon—
there we sat down and there we wept
when we remembered Zion. (Psalm 137)

The Psalms are full of lament. And you know, Moses laments. David laments. Job laments. Jesus laments.

Lament is part of being human.

I don’t know about you, but for me it is not a good idea to deny my emotions for too long. I don’t pretend well for very long. I can get out of the store without yelling at the clerk. But I can’t pretend to myself that I’m not angry. I rarely act out my anger but I do need to recognize it and acknowledge it. Then I am able to let my anger go.

If we are persistently sad or angry, something isn’t right and we need to be attentive to that. We need to talk with someone- wise friend, therapist, pastor. Equally, it seems to me, constantly pretending that bad things don’t happen isn’t healthy either.

Life is both horrible and wonderful. Sometimes simultaneously. And all of life, crummy and great, sad and happy, horrible and wonderful, all of it belongs to God.

What do you think?

* from the very fine and highly recommended book Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers

[From Conversations in Faith Weblog in late March, 2013.  Read the entire article at the link below]

https://conversationinfaith.wordpress.com/2013/03/22/stop-talking-about-gratitude/

Four Tips for Cultivating Character by Dr. Art Lindsley

There is a saying:

Sow a thought, reap an act. Sow an act, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap a character. Sow a character, reap a destiny.

Let’s look at each of these in turn, and what they mean for us spiritually as we seek to transform our homes, offices, schools, and communities.

Sow A Thought, Reap An Act

Deciding what goes into our minds is the beginning of dealing with character. The Bible has a lot to say about the importance of our thoughts. Paul tells us in Romans 12:2 to “be not conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

A first step in our transformation involves rejecting those thoughts from the cultural environment around us that are opposed to Christ. Rather than being conformed to these patterns of thinking, we ought to pursue the renewing of our minds.

In Matthew 12:34, Jesus says,

…the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart.

The treasure of good thoughts filling the heart spills over into good words and good actions. Thus, we need to guard our hearts and minds because out of these come our words and actions.

Sow An Act, Reap A Habit

When we do act rightly and continue that pattern, virtues are formed. We can look at certain people – co-workers or leaders, for example – and know they are reliable.

On the other hand, when we act wrongly and persist in that behavior, it becomes a vice. Bad habits can easily be stopped in their beginnings. However, the more they are practiced, the stronger they become.

In the beginning, bad habits are like cobwebs. They’re sticky and unpleasant, but easily broken. If not resisted, though, these behaviors can become chains that bind us.

It’s important to see how our thoughts lead to actions, which then turn into habits.

Sow A Habit, Reap A Character

Hebrews 5:14 describes the process from thought to character in a nutshell. It reads,

But solid food is for the mature, who, because of practice, have their senses trained to discern good and evil. 

First, we must take in solid food, not milk – meaning in-depth teaching rather than just the basics. Second, these thoughts need to not just stay in the mind. They need to be put into practice, so good habits are formed and wisdom is developed. Then our senses will be trained to “discern good and evil.”

We need solid biblical content and regular practice of it in order for character and wisdom to be produced.

Sow A Character, Reap A Destiny

Character flaws often profoundly affect a person’s future. A wrong word or phrase has destroyed the careers of media personalities, politicians, and businessmen and women. There is a saying that warns,

A slip of the tongue leads to a slip of the mind, which leads to a slip of the soul.

Something slips out of the tongue, and, because of pride, has to be rationalized and justified (the “slip of the mind”). That very denial of our original mistake leads to our “slip of the soul.”

The C.S. Lewis Institute used to have a summer program on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. I noticed two problems with the property that we struggle with in our own lives:

• Erosion: Around the edge of the property was built a sea wall consisting of large rocks. The owner of the property next door did not install a sea wall and lost about five acres or more of valuable land to the bay. When we neglect time in scripture and in prayer, we do not always see or feel the immediate consequences. It may take time before the erosion is evident. But sooner or later, the house will fall into the bay.

• Silt: Large boats used to be able to come right up the channel and dock in the harbor. However, because of silt accumulation, the channel needs to be dredged, a difficult and expensive proposition. There can be similar accumulation of silt in our lives, muddying the waters and making it hard for us to see clearly. Periodically, we need to dredge the channel so that clear water can flow again and we can restore clear communication with our Lord.

If we want to cultivate character in ourselves and our communities, we have to start with our thoughts and resolve to act in a different manner.

Lord, help us face defects in our character and resolve to deal with them starting in our thoughts and acts.

[From Institute for Faith, Work and Economics April 3, 2013.  To read the entire article click the link below]

http://blog.tifwe.org/four-tips-for-cultivating-character/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=810088&utm_campaign=0

Is The Image of God An Engine of Economic Progress? by Dr. Jay W. Richards

On Tuesday, Dr. Anne Bradley outlined four essential elements to economic progress. Human beings are the engines of this economic progress, and it turns out that the Bible has a lot to say about this role we’ve been given. Where does our ability to create economic progress come from?

Engines Made In the Image of God

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth,” read the Bible’s opening verses. Genesis 1 goes on to describe God creating everything over the course of a workweek. At the end of each day, Genesis says, “God saw that it was good.”

The sixth day starts like the previous ones, with God saying, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind.” But then there is an encore.

Rather than simply saying, “Let there be,” Genesis records God saying,

Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth. 

Then God blesses the man and the woman, giving them what theologians refer to as the cultural mandate:

Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over it…and over every living thing that moves upon the earth. 

Where Genesis 1 gives the cosmic overview, the second chapter zooms in tight. God fashions man from the ground, breathes into him the breath of life, and puts him in the garden “to till it and keep it.”

We aren’t ghosts trapped in bodies. We’re made of dirt, we’re made to work with dirt – and yet we have in us the very breath of God. Work itself is part of God’s original blessing, not his curse after the fall. We are a unique mixture of heaven and earth, so the way we work should reflect the fact that we are a unity of matter and spirit, neither pack animals nor angels.

The idea of the image of God – the imago dei – has given theologians gainful employment for two thousand years. In the text, God is acting as the sovereign King over the heavens and the earth. This Divine King, in turn, appoints us to have dominion as kings and queens over the tiny parts of creation we can affect. All our creativity comes from God. As Creator, God has made us creators.

We learn more about the image of God in the first chapter of John, which parallels Genesis 1:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him…

Before everything else, there was mind, reason, Logos. It was through this Logos that God created everything.

Though these biblical texts are not drawn from an economic textbook, they cast light on the most important truth of economics. With our hands and our minds, we can create wealth, and in the right circumstances, that human-generated wealth becomes the basis of more wealth. We are made in the image of the Creator God, so we should expect this of ourselves.

The History of Our Role In Economic Progress

Humans were created and first roamed the earth as hunters and gatherers. Then they began to domesticate sheep and cattle. They cultivated plants such as wheat and barley. These farmers started with what God had provided – seeds, land, rain, animals – and enriched it.

Today, economists list the three factors of production as land, labor, and capital. After man developed ways to store food and irrigate land, cities appeared with growing populations not directly tied to agriculture.

As recently as 1900, eighty percent of the world’s population was still on farms. That number had dropped to 50 percent by the 1970s. With solid private property laws and high technology, less than two percent of the American population now lives on farms, and yet they produce enough to feed the American population andexport food abroad. Most of history was marked by scarcity. We now live amid both great scarcity and great abundance.

What’s more, most of the vast new wealth created in our economy derives not from land, however, but from intellectual capital, information, and technology. This hints at a startling trend. Over time, we can create more and more wealth with less and less matter.

We don’t know if these growth rates will continue indefinitely. But we have no reason to think that our ability to create new wealth will come to a halt tomorrow. New wealth comes not from matter alone, but from how we represent, inform, and transform matter – from the mind.

This most profound truth of economics is just what Christians should expect, since we know that each of us is created in the image of God.

[Taken from the April 4, 2013 Institute for Faith, Work and Economics blog.  You can see the entire article at:

http://blog.tifwe.org/is-the-image-of-god-an-engine-of-economic-progress/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=810088&utm_campaign=0

Faith at Work….

“I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.” -Philippians 4:13

A friend sent me a devotion from the Hour of Power ministry.  This story is excerpted from that devotion

A young seminary student aspired to be a youth minister. His funds were running low and decided to take a job during the summer as a lumberjack in the nearby lumber camp. His counselor warned him that the lumberjacks were going to deride him about his beliefs, but the young man decided to take the well-paying job anyways. At the end of summer, he returned to hit the books. His counselor met with him and asked him how his job turned out. “Great, I made lots of money, enough to get me through the next two semesters.”

“Well, what happened when they found out you’re a Christian?” asked the counselor.

“I had no problems at all as they never found out,” He replied.

One of our main goals at Life Journey Ministries is to help people to see their work as ministry for God.  When we each see our daily work as God’s work, the workplace becomes a better place.  See our previous blog which talks about why faith and work are not to be separated.

Excerpt from Hour of Power Devotions 4/17/2013.  To read the entire devotion go to

http://www.hourofpower.org/devotions/detail.php?contentid=7814&did=107