The Church at work

 

These slightly alien words are being tested by a group of people whose attitudes towards work are changing. They are realising that God really is interested in what they do on weekdays between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. A harshly-lit room filled with desks, chairs, computers, a photocopier, and a pervading air of pressurised tension. This is my office, but also my mission field. The person I sit next to, the friends I drink coffee with, the receptionist I say good morning and goodnight to every day. These are my colleagues, also the people I witness to every day. And being like Nimrod, 'the mighty warrior before the Lord' (Gen 10:9), means doing everything 'as for the Lord'. It does not just mean talking to workmates about Christianity - it also means working for God, glorifying Him in every action, every business decision and every ethical judgment, living out the presence of God. The workplace is the one even playing field where non- Christians can see Christ at work in their Christian colleagues for 40, 50, 60 hours a week. "We fish in pools and puddles when in our workplace we are sitting by an ocean," Mark Greene says.

 

But how can the church tackle this untapped ocean of opportunity?

How can Christians at work be supported in their own individual mission field, in every company, every school, every household, and every city in the country? At Above Bar Church in Southampton city centre, a sample survey discovered that each person meets with around 62 other people a week. If that applies to the whole congregation of about 600 people, together we come into contact with 37,200 people a week - almost 20% of Southampton's entire population.

 

How can we use these encounters to win the city for Christ?

Paul Allcock, one of the church leaders, said: 'The vast majority of Christians spend most of their working life in a secular environment. If our church is going to mean anything, it needs to have an impact in the workplace. The role of the church is to equip and develop people in their walk with God, and in the application of that at every level of their lives. The figures giving the number of people we meet each week are extraordinary. Clearly, the workplace is a key area in terms of reaching people in the community.'
Paul has promoted two Christian Life and Work courses at Above Bar in the last 18 months, and sees these as a key tool for focussing people's minds on their own particular ministry at work. "It raises people's awareness of the fact that the workplace is a place where we should be real as Christians. On a course, people can share what they find difficult, and can also encourage and pray for one another," he said. At Above Bar, they have already achieved much. They have a workplace notice board, showing where people work in Southampton, what challenges they face and what opportunities they meet. This does two things:

 

1. It encourages people to think of being a Christian in the so-called "secular" workplace as equally valid as translating the Bible in Africa or preaching in the Far East. It says that all work is about mission.

 

2. It challenges the myth that our work is not important to God, which in turn encourages people to pray about what they see on the board. They also ran a service that focussed on being a Christian at work, with a sermon on issues of faith and work, and testimonies from workers about how they put their faith into practice. But things at Above Bar are pressing further ahead. Church members recently came up with practical steps to provide a greater level of support for "workplace missionaries":

 

1. Setting up "affinity groups" - groups of Christians in similar working environments meeting regularly to pray about work situations; not just crises at work, but everything from our day to day interaction with our boss, to the way we handle pressure.

 

2. Work-shadowing for ministers - inviting the church leaders into our workplaces, so they can see the challenges people face first-hand. This would give them a better understanding of the work environment, feeding into more focussed, relevant sermons.

 

3. Setting aside a slot in the weekly service sheet that requests prayer for "workplace missionaries". Over time, this would challenge more people to change their attitudes towards their own workplace, encouraging a more practical and proactive approach to ministry at work.

 

4. Individually develop a five-minute, jargon-free testimony to deliver to non-Christian work colleagues, in the right situations.

 

5. Put people who are new to the church in touch with others who work in a similar field, or even for the same company.

 

6. Appoint mentors who could be used as a resource for tricky questions or for help in approaching a particular situation.

 

7. Drop a spiritual "post-it note" into the working day via regular email encouragements relating to work ministry - from LICC or the church, or by setting up an Internet forum where people can post messages.

Ben Clark, who organised the most recent CLAW course, said: "This is about changing assumptions to change the world. I believe that most people don't see their work as something innately important to God. From this assumption flows a great deal of our attitudes. I'm very interested in changing this, and I believe it will yield great leaps forward."

 

The ocean of Southampton remains an ocean, but a team of fired-up missionaries, equipped with the right teaching and resources, are poised, ready to plunge in and make a difference.

 

John Armitage

Civil Engineer
'Things I find hard at work include balancing my time, trying to make sure I do a good job without overdoing and overstressing myself. We know we are working "as for the Lord," but it is possible to overdo that and end up shattered. Things I've found helpful include trying to remember to pray when the phone is ringing, sending an arrow prayer and committing the call to God.'

 

Marian Weston

Patient liaison service worker
'I changed my job a year ago and found myself becoming increasingly cynical about my role and its value. I have been challenged into thinking differently about what I do, why I do it and what it is that really motivates me at work. God has put me there and therefore I should work 'with all my heart' as ultimately it is Him I am serving.'

 

Ben Stockley

Environmental health officer
'It is great to see what a big mission field the workplace is. I had never really viewed it in such a way - I spend much of my social time with Christians, so it is great to realise that the place where I come into contact with non-Christians, and a place where I spend a lot of my time, is a place where I can really have an impact! Easier said than done of course, but I have found that opportunities do arise.'

 

Paul Halberstadt

Civil Engineer
'Christians do not generally think of their everyday work as work for God, but think of work as only a place for mission. My work does take up a lot of my time, so realising that it is work for God rather than time away from Christian things has been helpful. It is really important to obey your boss and back him up, because through doing this you will stand out showing your colleagues what it means to be a Christian and through this evangelise to them.'

 

 

Claire Moriarty

 

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