Why your job is worth it

This week me and Rachel did a blog swap where we posted our posts on each others sites to see my post for the week jump over to https://kineticintent.weebly.com/ and read about SELF CARE FOR MEAT HEADS, as well as to see more of Rachels writing.

When I was little, I dreamed of trekking across the desert and slashing through the rainforests as a missionary. I wanted to do big things, important things!

Now I’m an adult, and I can’t say I’ve ever done that. Even so, I’ve had my share of adventures as a volunteer EMT. Climbing into windows, crossing icy roads near chaotic traffic, and controlling people experiencing delusions is part of the job description. I’ve also done wilderness search and rescue, and occasionally even saw excitement as a volunteer at a pregnancy center.

But I’ve also taken on some other jobs. Cashier. Editor. Social media manager. Administrative specialist. When I was young, I didn’t anticipate working those jobs at all, much less writing this next point that I’ve learned from all my different roles:

A job’s excitement doesn’t define its worth.

On the Frontlines

The term “frontline worker” has been used a lot recently. As a “frontline worker,” this term and the near worship associated with it aggravate me to no end, but I’ll spare you from my ire and not get into that. Whether or not I like it, it serves as a good illustration for the moment.

We think of some jobs as being on the frontlines. Be it healthcare workers with a disease, soldiers in a combat zone, firefighters at a house fire, or missionaries in unreached nations, it’s easy to see how some people charge ahead and take the lead.

These things are certainly good and should be commended. However, when it comes to our faith, many more people are on the frontlines than you might think.

The Frontlines of Faith

When a people group first hears the gospel, it’s a wonderful, amazing thing, and I’m confident that Heaven rejoices.

But also, as Jesus said in Luke 15:10, “There is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God when one sinner repents.”

The frontlines of the world’s scale are important, but the frontlines of a human’s scale are also important. We are called to preach the gospel to all nations. That includes the ones near and far. That includes the distant countries, and that includes our next-door neighbors.

There is no one more equipped to reach the frontlines of human hearts than family, friends, and coworkers.

Think about it this way. TV evangelists sometimes do good work, reaching a large audience with the message. But between a TV evangelist and a coworker, who is more likely to have a big impact on someone’s life?

Now, we can’t transform someone’s life. We can plant a seed, but only God can make it grow.

That said, planting that seed is important work. Only God knows for sure, but if I had to guess, I’d say that though a TV evangelist’s message could reach people, it rarely does in isolation. The message may be true, but words alone don’t soften hearts.

Love does.

Over and over, the New Testament urges Christians to live at peace with everyone as far as it’s in their ability, to obey the governing authorities, and to show love. These things are important, not just for our own sakes, but also for the message God commanded us to spread: the gospel.

Our Calling

If an ear said, “Because I’m an ear and not an eye, I’m not part of the body,” that would be absurd, wouldn’t it?

1 Corinthians 12 says it’s the same way with believers. If a mechanic said, “Because I’m a mechanic and not an evangelist in a hostile nation, I’m not part of the Body of Christ,” wouldn’t that also be absurd?

We are all called to different things. Missionaries in hostile nations are called to important, life-giving work. They experience many hardships, threats, and danger.

But while that mechanic might never be in a situation where he has to stare death in the eye and still preach life, he might show a lost soul in his own neighborhood what the love of Christ looks like.

God created us to have a diverse array of abilities, temperaments, and interests. Not everyone is called to the same things, and even those who are called to the more “exciting” things might have seasons of their lives when they need to work a more “boring” job.

Ultimately, if we are faithful in listening to what God wants us to do, he will put us exactly where he wants us. And sometimes, where he wants us—for a time, at least—is at our boring, regular, no-excitement jobs.

The world sees Christians as judgmental, hateful, and divisive. But what if you showed the love of Christ to your coworkers? Through your quiet witness, they can become open to learning about the One who loved so much that he gave his life.

You can show respect, courtesy, faith, and courage in your everyday life. You can be a quiet witness to the people around, and the quiet witnesses working together can let out a loud roar.

It’s not just me that’s saying this. In 1 Thessalonians 4:10b–12, Paul wrote, “Yet we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more, and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.”

Even if you work an 9–5 office job, you can still be on the frontlines of witnessing to the people around you. Just because you aren’t trampling through the rainforest doing exciting, dangerous, or adventurous things doesn’t mean you’re not on the frontlines of reaching souls.

Our best plans or grandest intentions aren’t what matters. Our fulfillment will never be in our lives’ work.

In the end, the only thing that matters is how we lived for Christ wherever we were called.

Author Bio

Rachel Scheller writes YA Adventure stories, but she doesn’t like to leave all the adventure to her characters. She has dabbled in a wide range of areas, from emergency medical services to helping with youth programs to fitness. She is also a blogger and freelance editor. You can find her online at rmscheller.com or on Instagram @r.m.scheller.

This week me and Rachel did a blog swap where we posted our posts on each others sites to see my post for the week jump over to https://kineticintent.weebly.com/ and read about SELF CARE FOR MEAT HEADS, as well as to see more of Rachels writing.