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Career
Question:
I have been fasting and praying earnestly for quite a while for my mother to get a job promotion. I have been trusting that God will work it out. It seems that God is not answering my prayer; I am not hearing from Him. What should I do?
Answered on 06/28/06:
People that are not even Christians who never pray and never fast – they get promotions. We have got to be real. And understand that getting promoted is not always a spiritual issue. It is a natural issue.
Are you at work on time? Are you the best employee? Are you diligent? Are you following the principles of God’s Word: faithfulness and generosity? And are you educating yourself and are you improving and are you serving your boss? And are you serving your company? And are you taking out the trash? If you see something dirty, are you cleaning it? If you see something on the ground, are you picking it up? I you find a need, are you filling it? If you find something that’s broken, are you fixing it?
In other words, God uses natural principles that He instituted in His Word: faithfulness and loyalty and integrity and hard work and diligence. These are the principles in the Word of God that if you don’t do those, you can pray and fast forever and you’ll never get promoted. But if you do those, you may never even need to pray and fast about that job. And we should reserve our prayer and fasting to getting a loved one saved or using our prayer and fasting to really believe for supernatural spiritual breakthroughs in our lives.
But when it comes to promotions in our workplace or to getting a job, Are you knocking on a thousand doors? Somebody said, “I was praying for eight hours because I’m out of a job and I didn’t get a job. My prayers aren’t working.” Well, you should be praying while you walk from door to door, from company to company, knocking on a door with a suit and a tie on and knowing what it is that that company produces and knowing what you can do to serve that company. Do some research. Find out what makes that company work, what makes that company succeed and get in there and figure it out and roll up your sleeves and be diligent and be faithful and you will be promoted.
It’s not God’s fault. It’s not that God’s not hearing you. It’s that sometimes that we’re not hearing from God and maybe your mother needs to look at some of the ways that she behaves or carries herself. I’m not insulting anybody because I don’t know the situation. She might be the most diligent person on the planet, so keep praying and keep fasting. Or encourage her to start looking at another company because as she’s faithful and she’s loyal and she’s the best employee at that company and she’s still not getting promoted, then maybe she’s in the wrong company and she needs to go somewhere else.
Question:
I’m in my mid-forties and facing a dilemma as far as my professional career is concerned. I went to school for a number of years. For 9 years, I worked for a Pharmaceutical company. It got bought out and I was kicked out along with 5000 other people. I have a family to feed meanwhile. My choices are I either move and I go on the east coast or the west coast to stay in my field or I stay around here where all of my friends are and my church is and all of that that I’ve built up for so many years with my family and for my family and do something else and that would be with working with my hands. How do you go about that?
Answered on 05/02/06:I know a lot of people deal with similar situations. You have to follow the Lord’s will for you life. And how do you know the Lord’s will? Number one, He leads us by His Word, His Scriptures. Number two, He leads us by His Spirit. And number three, He leads us by the peace of God that is in our heart.
And if the direction that we’re looking for is not in the scriptures, if you can’t find it in the Scriptures, you don’t seem to be hearing the voice of the Lord through the Holy Spirit, then you fall back on the peace of God that passes all comprehension. And if we’re not seeing it in the Scriptures and not hearing it from the Holy Spirit, then we need to say, “Alright, what do I have peace about in my heart?”
Colossians chapter 3 says, “Let the peace of God act as umpire in your heart, ruling and deciding for you which direction you should go in.” So, what you have to ask yourself is, “do you have peace in your heart about staying in the city you’re in, staying in the church your in, staying with the friends that you have and taking a different career path and working hard at working with your hands and developing a new gift and a new talent and a new ability? Do you have peace about that? Or do you have more peace about moving to the east or west coast and staying in the field that you’ve worked in.
If you have more peace about one or the other, then that’s the choice you need to stick with because that’s the Lord trying to speak to you and give you a peace about that. But you should also have some deadlines for yourself. Like, “within three months, I’ve got to be making ‘x’ number of dollars.” Don’t make it unrealistic, but make some goals for yourself so that you can provide for your family.
There are times when we’re looking for direction from God that we don’t find it exactly in the Scripture, we don’t find it in the voice of the Holy Spirit, so we should look for it in the peace of God that is in our heart. We shouldn’t look for the peace of God when we know that the Scripture clearly teaches something already. Whether you have peace or not, you should do what the Scripture says.
Question:
I work with a certain celebrity and although my wife and I feel that it is God’s will for me to work with this individual, we’re together every day and I don’t want any of this guy’s stuff to come over on me and yet I’m not seeing any of my spirit going over on him. It gets very, very frustrating. I’m just wondering if this is what God wants for me and if this is His will. I am asking but yet, I’m not getting any answers and I’m to the point where I don’t want to keep working with this person.
Answered on 04/13/06:I think you need to know that you’re not alone. There are a lot of people who are in a business or in a job that they really don’t like or don’t love. I believe that ultimately that God wants you to be in a job and doing what you love to do. But in the meantime, you’ve got to provide for your family, you’ve got to provide for your household, you’ve got to take care of your bills.
I think a lot of people are in jobs where they’re not making a positive influence on the people that they’re with and the people that they’re working with may potentially leave a negative influence on them. I think that you have to be strong enough as a man, as a leader, and as a Christian to work in a secular environment, to work in a non-Christian environment with non-Christian people, because whether you realize it or not, your light is shining and your influence is penetrating. You don’t see it right now with the people you work with, you don’t think that you’re making a difference or making an influence, but you really are.
And as long as you continue to maintain your convictions, if you maintain your convictions, then it’s okay to stay in that work environment with somebody who doesn’t seem to be responding to you. Because you’re not there to convert them, you’re there to make a living. You’re there to earn some seed so you can plant some seed and get a harvest. And I think that you should be able to put up with that longer and not worry that you’re not influencing that person positively. As long as you hold fast to your convictions and to your faith, you can’t help but to make a difference in that person’s life. It is penetrating that person.
And realize that in any job, with any people that are not Christians, the potential for you to stumble or the potential for you to be influenced negatively is always going to be there. That’s why Jesus prayed regarding His disciples, “Lord, I don’t pray that you take them out of the world, but keep them from the evil one even though they have to be in this world.”
So, my prayer for you would be that God would keep you from the evil one even though you’re in a secular situation with an unbeliever or a person who is not living for God and if God leads you to walk away from that situation, then do so, but make sure you have another job on the other side of things so that you can provide for your family.
Unless you’re following the lifestyle of this person, following the sin of this person, which I’m sure you’re not, then it’s okay as long as it’s paying your bills. But keep praying that God would open the door that no man can close for something else so that you can walk away on your terms, not just because you can’t stand being around this person any more. There’s always going to be somebody that you don’t like or that doesn’t like you that you have to work with. Even in Christian environments that’s true. So, the grass always looks greener on the other side, but it often is not greener on the other side. So, hang in there. Be strong.
Question:
I’m a Christian business woman in an executive role and I work predominantly with males. I need your advice on how to handle some of the adversities that come just in dealing with business relationships. And not trying to respond with biting somebody’s head off because you had your head bitten off. It’s very tough. It’s easier to apply to the personal life, but I think in the business world especially when dealing with predominantly men, it’s almost sometimes perceived as a weakness in the business world …
Answered on 03/09/06:Well, it is, but the Bible says in Luke chapter 6 that we are to treat people not how we’ve been treated, but treat people the way that we want to be treated. Most of the world and most of society treats people the way they’ve been treated. And what we need to do is we need to treat people the way we would like to be treated.
And so, we have to see relationships as opportunities to sow our seed. Even though I’m getting a bad harvest from somebody at work, I’m going to change the harvest that I’m getting by changing the seed that I’m sowing. It starts with me. It doesn’t start with them. They’re not going to treat me better just because I want them to. I’m going to have to sow the seeds of treating other people the way that I want to be treated; even if they never treat me like that, I’m going to treat them that way anyway. And when I do that, I’m setting myself up for a harvest of having better relationships in the workplace even though there’s adversity and there are adversaries. The Bible says, “When a man’s ways are pleasing to the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him” in Proverbs chapter 16. So, you focus on pleasing God. Focus on treating people the way you would like to be treated. And you’ll get a harvest from those two things.
It’s an attitude that you’ve got to have. An attitude of kindness, an attitude of being interested in what’s best for the other person, but you’ve got to be a doggone good business person nonetheless and not get walked on. Jesus was shrewd in the way that He dealt with business. Jesus taught about the shrewd steward who was a bad steward and then he made some good decisions and he was the unrighteous steward and then he turned around. And then He talks about the men who had talents and they traded with their talents and one buried his talents and He took away the talent from that one. So, we have to be sharp and wise and prudent. But it’s our attitude; it’s our tone; it’s our spirit in which we operate that we need to make sure is gentle and kind and loving and thinking about the other person.
If you go up to somebody… I did this the other day. I went up to somebody the other day and said, “I thank you for how you’ve handled the situation. I thank you for how you’ve helped me. And I want a win-win situation here, but here’s all I can offer you. Here’s all I can do for you.” And when I did that and in the spirit in which I did it, it was received. But if I would have come out fighting and saying, “Hey, look, you’re going to take this deal or else…” You can’t do that. I got what I wanted, but I did it with a gentle spirit, but I didn’t lie down. I wasn’t perceived as weak; I was perceived as meek. There’s a difference between meekness and weakness. Weakness is when you just get walked all over by everybody. Meekness is having the strength to strike back, but not doing it, but finding a gentle approach to the situation rather than an argumentative, fighting approach.
Question:
Can you help me clarify how to endure at my place of employment? I work for a small place, with a tyrant for a boss and a lot of negativity within the other employees. It is hard for me to go to work everyday having to deal with a man who seems to do most everything against my Christian beliefs.
Answered on 03/09/06:I would look for another job if that’s true – if that’s an accurate description. First, try to serve the best you can. Talk to that person if you have an open door to do that. Say, “listen, you know, could we have mutual respect here?” If there is no place for you to say that or have that, then you should be looking for another job.
Don’t quit. Just endure until you’ve found the other job that you need to be in. But you need to see that place as a transitional position unless something dramatic changes. But realize, you’re not going to find a perfect Christian environment everywhere, so don’t try to find that. Don’t try to escape. But if it’s truly oppressive, then you should be looking for something else.
Question:
What does the Bible say about racism and discrimination on the job?
Answered on 03/09/06:Well, clearly, the Bible is opposed to racism. But the Bible clearly states that there are two races in this world. There is the race of the believer and there’s the race of the unbeliever. So what we have to realize is that even though people may sometimes discriminate against us because of our color or because our race or our ethnicity, God doesn’t discriminate against us because of those reasons.
And you know what? If your job is so unfair that it discriminates against you at your job because of your color or your race, then ask God to open up another job. Say, “God, you are no racist and you do not discriminate. The Bible says you are no respecter of persons, that means that He doesn’t give favor to one person and not make it available to somebody else. It’s available to everybody.” We need to realize that He is fair and He is just and He is never going to hold back His blessing and His favor in the life of one who believes. So go to God.
Realize that people are going to look at you in the flesh sometimes. You can’t stop that. The Bible says that man judges according to the flesh, but God looks at the heart. You can’t change the fact there are going to be people that judge from the flesh, that judge based on what they see and what it looks like. But that’s not how God is. God is judging you based on what you believe and He’s honoring you because of what you believe.
So what do you do about it? Discrimination at your job. What do you do about discrimination or racism at your job? You let wash off of you like water off a duck’s back. You can’t let it bother you. You just got to know that people are going to look at you through their own eyes and you need to make sure you look at them the way God looks at them. So don’t retaliate. Don’t respond. Just be the best at your job and people will not be able to discriminate against you. Nobody discriminates against success. If you have success in your life, you’re going to do great. If you do things right at your job and you’re the best at that you can possibly be, then there’s no argument against that.
Question:Does the Bible give any career direction?
Answered on 03/09/06:Everyone has a unique talent or gift. It would behoove you to try to discover what your talents are and then pursue a career choice that enhances, validates, and develops those gifts that God placed inside of you. You know, being what you were born to be, doing what you were born to do – there is nothing more satisfying than that.
I was born to answer people’s questions from the Word of God. I was born to minister the Word of God. I was born to teach the Bible. I sure didn’t grow up doing those things, but they are what God called me to do, and I’m fulfilled and satisfied with doing them.
So go through Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12, the scriptures on the gifts and talents God has distributed. Study them, pray over them, and see which of those motivational gifts are really the ones that drive you. Then find a career that enhances and encourages that gift. Maybe you will find that you are called to the Gospel and to ministry. Maybe you will find that you are called to business. Whatever the case, find a career that can utilize your gifts so that you can honor and glorify God with them.
Question:
I get paid commissions only. God has provided some income, but my bills require much more money. I feel the Lord is telling me to hold on and not look for another job. However, I need to start making money to pay taxes and other future debt. Should I stay put or should I look for a job? I do give in my tithes and offerings.
Answered on 03/09/06:I think first things first. It’s good that you are putting God first in your life in your finances and in your heart. That’s the best news that you can give and that’s the best decision that you can make. I think that if you believe the Lord is telling you to hold onto your current job, but you need to make more money, then maybe what you need to do is get a second job because you got to pay your bills. You got to pay your taxes. You can’t go into debt to the government. The way that the government deals with people that are in debt to them is that they send them to prison. We don’t want you going there. I’m not saying if you’re in debt, you’re going to prison. But I’m saying that people that don’t pay their taxes get in big trouble. Don’t let that happen to you.
Here’s a great illustration for all of us. When you believe that God speaks to you something, take into consideration the consequences of doing what it is that you believe God is speaking to you. Because for example, in this case, if you think that God told you not to leave your current job, but you still have bills that you can’t pay, then you either need to get a second job or you need to recognize that you really aren’t hearing from God and you need to go look for something else.
Here’s a rule of thumb: in general, now, never quit a job thinking that God wants you to take some other job before the other job is made available to you. Don’t quit a job and then have nothing. If you’re going to leave your current job, make sure you have something else or start a part-time job in addition to your current job until that job overtakes your need and overtakes you bills and is able to bring in more income than your existing job. Make sure to do that and you’ll really be blessed. And you’ll be safe. You’re protecting yourself from making bad decisions.
Question:
I work in an environment where it’s pretty rough. It’s kind of a factory environment and I just want to know how to handle some of those situations gracefully without being judgmental, but yet not letting it touch me in the wrong way.
Answered on 03/09/06:It’s so common that somebody with a tender heart like yours, that you want to do the right thing, you want to live holy or live godly, but you don’t want to hurt anybody in the process, you don’t want to come across as a hypocrite or that you’re trying to claim that you’re holier than them, so I understand what you’re saying.
First of all, don’t stay in relationships with people like that. You got to work with them, but in your off time, your break time, you just be to yourself or be with the people that you think are wholesome and that can at least edify you or at least not tear you down or say things that hurt you. And also, there have been times where I’ve sat in work environments or school environments as I was growing up in the Lord where I would say, “You know what? Not that I’m judging you, but I would appreciate it if you didn’t talk like that or if you didn’t say things like that because it really doesn’t produce the kind of environment that we’re trying to achieve here.” And if you tell them something like that, the Bible says, “Wisdom makes knowledge acceptable.”
So, be soft, be kind, but be clear in what you’re saying. And there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s just as much your place of work as it is their place of work, so it ought to be fair that everybody respect one another. So, to ask them to kindly respect those that don’t talk like that is not a problem at all. And if they mistreat you for that, then they don’t deserve to be in your presence.
Question:
I’m married and I travel a lot. Does the Bible specifically say that a woman has to quit her job to stay home and take care of her husband, or do you think that it’s OK for a woman to work?
Answered on 03/09/06:No, the Bible doesn’t say that you shouldn’t work. The Bible doesn’t say that you have to stay home and take care of your husband. Of course, there is a domestic responsibility that every woman probably wants to fulfill – plus there is an innate desire inside every woman to have a home where she can create a loving environment for her family. You just have to find a balance.
The Bible says that marriage is a union in which two become one. There is a sense of teamwork and unity, and each person has a role. Amos 3:3 says, “How can two walk together unless they are in agreement?” That’s the most important thing to have in your marriage – agreement and trust. So don’t try to find verses in Scripture where you can defend yourself against your husband. Rather, talk prayerfully about the Word of God with your husband. Talk about God’s vision for you marriage and family – and then to come into agreement.
I don’t like for my wife to be away all the time. We have four children, and she does work – alongside of me. But sometimes her responsibilities take her away from me, and I have to accept that. She has to feel that she has individuality, an individual identity before the Lord, but not one that comes at the expense of neglecting her husband and family. I also have to give; I have to make sure that I am loving her as Christ loves the Church. I need to be generous in letting her fulfill her individuality just as just as Jesus lets the Church fulfill its individuality.
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