We conclude GOD @ WORK WEEK with a little prayer that encapsulates everything we covered:
Work Prayer
God’s Employee Handbook
It’s GOD @ WORK WEEK here on GUWG, where all week we’ve been examining what the Bible says about the wonderful world of work.
We’ll wrap things up by issuing an updated 2012 edition of our employee handbook. Print it out. Post it in your cube. Pray through it daily.
God’s Big 10
It’s GOD @ WORK WEEK here on GUWG, where all week long we’ve been taking an in-depth look at what the Bible says about the wonderful world of work.
Today’s topic: The Ten Commandments @ Work.
Most companies have values statements. They get put on a nice plaque, hung in a conference room and then promptly forgotten. My guess is that if you asked employees to recite ‘em, only a tiny fraction could. And only a tiny fraction of that would actually try to live ‘em out.
How To Succeed in Business
It’s GOD @ WORK WEEK here on GUWG, where we’re taking an in-depth look at what the Bible says about the wonderful world of work.
We’ll start today with a question …
According to studies conducted by big-brained researchers in the business world, what’s the absolute #1 most important trait a leader must have to be successful?
Here are your choices:
- Charisma
- Intelligence
- Communication skills
- Business knowledge
- Smooth dance moves
- Coordinating accessories
- Humility
God’s Communication Plan
It’s GOD @ WORK WEEK here at GUWG, where we’re taking an in-depth look at what the Bible says about the wonderful world of work.
Today’s topic: COMMUNICATION. Almost nothing is more important in the workplace.
Here are five basic principles straight out of God’s Word to help guide your workplace discussions. Start using ‘em today.
God @ Work
It’s GOD @ WORK WEEK here on GUWG, where once a year we take an in-depth look at what the Bible says about that one little word: “work.”
There’s no better place to start than here:
Whatever you do,
work at it with all your heart,
as working for the Lord,
not for men.
(Colossians 3:23)
This verse comes in handy whenever I’m doing something I don’t particularly like, which is approximately every 3.8 seconds.
Job #1
After Jesus fed a huge crowd with a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish, people started to get a little curious about Him. They wondered what his deal was. They started to ask questions.
Like this one:
What must we do
to do the works God requires?
(John 6:28)
That’s the sort of question I probably would have asked. How do I get in good with God? What does he want me to do? Where I can get the official to-do list so I can start earning heaven points?
Jesus befuddled them all (and me) with his answer:
The work of God is this:
to believe in the one he has sent.
(John 6:29)
That’s it? Believe?
If I’m honest, there’s still a part of me that doesn’t quite trust God 100% to let me into heaven without a whole bunch of gold stars on my résumé. But here’s what the Bible says about our very best acts apart from Him: they’re like “rotten stinking filthy underwear” and/or “dung” (my paraphrases of Isaiah 54:6 and Philippians 3:8).
Jesus doesn’t want us to go it alone. He wants us to trust Him 1,000%. He wants us to BELIEVE in Him with all our ♥.
That’s Job #1.
NO WORRIES WEEK
Feeling a bit STRESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSED?
You’re not alone. Consider these eye-popping statistics:
- The average workweek is up 32% over the past 25 years.
- Time spent in traffic is up 157% over that same period.
- 40% of us are sleep-deprived.
- 33% of us are “chronically overworked.”
- We squandered 448 million unused vacation days last year.
- 80% of medical expenses are now stress-related.
- 1 in 6 of us has exhibited “desk rage.”
Yikes. (For those who aren’t familiar with the phrase “desk rage,” here’s s a graphic example.)
In an effort to help address this dire situation, we hereby officially declare this NO WORRIES WEEK here on GUWG. All week long we’ll examine what God says about worry, anxiety, stress, fear and other things in this world that freak us out.
Here’s today’s anti-anxiety verse. Relaaaaaaax, take a deeeeeeep breath and ponder each precious word.
Be still
and know that I am God.
(Psalm 46:10)
(Sources: Harris Interactive, Urban Mobility Report, Families and Work Institute, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Expedia.com, AOL, Caravan Opinion Research, TIME Magazine, National Safety Council)
Wisdom Week: Work
It’s WISDOM WEEK here on GUWG, where all week we’re probing the practical principles of Proverbs.
Today’s topic: Work.
God has a lot to say about the way we should work. Here are a few excerpts from His official employee handbook . . .
Be Humble. Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. (16:18)
Listen More Than You Talk. A wise man listens to advice. (12:15) When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise. (10:19)
Be Honest. The Lord abhors dishonest scales, but accurate weights are his delight. (11:1) Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow. (13:11) Food gained by fraud tastes sweet to a man, but he ends up with a mouth full of gravel. (20:17)
Be Diligent. Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! (6:6 Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will serve before kings; he will not serve before obscure men. (22:29)
Encourage Others. The lips of the righteous nourish many. (10:21a) An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up. (12:25) Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. (16:24)
Don’t Gossip. A gossip betrays a confidence; so avoid a man who talks too much. (20:19) Without gossip, a quarrel dies down. (26:20b)
Don’t Worry. Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked, for the Lord will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being snared. (3:25-26)
Seek God’s Advice and Give Him All the Glory. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. (3:5)
WORK GOD’S WAY
Wednesday Wisdom
Here’s this week’s proverb. Read it. Memorize it. Live it.
He who works his land
will have abundant food,
but the one who chases fantasies
will have his fill of poverty.
(Proverbs 28:19)
