Tips for leaders supporting workplace engagement

The sacred/secular divide

What does our present-day culture tell us about how truthfully we believe in the call of God in men and women’s lives at work?

In recent Care for the Family surveys, we discovered:

37% had not heard a message on work in the last 12 months.
33% had never heard a sermon or talk in church relating to work.
75% had never been taught on work as a calling or vocation.
75% of Christians had never been asked about work as their ministry by their pastors or cell group leaders.

Very few in our congregations are at work with a clear theology – what God thinks, what he expects or what the Bible teaches. Little wonder, then, that for some people, the working environment is such a struggle.

So as church leaders we are faced with these questions:

• Is work a tolerated nuisance for Christians? Is it a trap minimising ministry; a trap of necessary financial provision? Is it an idol, which satisfies the need for meaning and self worth?
• Or is it a wonderful, challenging, fulfilling and God-given environment? The one place in which they can most fully express their Christianity?

What we really believe about the answers to these questions will be reflected in our church culture.

In research carried out by the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity, people were asked to rate on a scale of 1-4 how relevant Sunday preaching really was. They had to respond in four categories; 4 was high and 1 was low.

The results:

How routinely do workplace people get air space on Sundays? Or is it like the Sunday school teacher who said: “I teach 30 kids every Sunday for one hour and they haul me to the front of the church for prayer. But I’ve been teaching non-Christian kids every day for years, and no-one has ever prayed for me.”

That’s the sacred/secular divide and it’s being reflected in our culture.

Changing the culture - leaders engaging with the workplace

One of my friends, who had had a successful business, had been forced into liquidation. Nothing could be done to save the business, but my friend wanted to ensure that there were people around to support the staff emotionally and with prayer. So several leaders from his church gathered at the office to be available to talk, listen and pray for his staff. Though many of the staff weren’t Christians, they truly appreciated this support.

Such a supportive encounter between work and church is rare. Let’s think of creative ways in which we could interact with all types of working men and women. In what creative ways could a church leader adopt the same spirit or stance?

Now, I’ve been a church leader, and I know what it’s like to think “Oh no, not something else to think about!” So let me reassure you. Here are some ideas, but you don’t need to feel you have to achieve them all at once. Just doing one of them every six months would change your church’s culture over time. Make small changes, a little at a time. Small, symbolic, gradual changes ultimately yield big results.

• Try to visit people in their workplace. It’s inappropriate to visit people in some professions, but meeting them for lunch or breakfast can make a big difference to them - someone cared, prayed and valued their work enough to share God with them in it.

  A friend of mine asked if I would go and meet with him at work. Later, he said to me: “Leaders should be encouraged not to underestimate the value of moments like these for workplace people, especially for leaders in the workplace. These times help you as a leader to understand the environment in which your people operate; it gives a genuine feel for the context. And there is nothing like a personal touch to engage more effectively in ongoing care and prayer, affirmation and encouragement.”

  David Marchment, formerly senior pastor at Basingstoke Community church, said: “Having been a teacher for six years, I remember well the pressures of that particular workplace. I often wonder, having served the Lord for 20 years in the employ of the church, whether regular time immersed in the ‘marketplace’ might be very good for all church staff, to help keep them informed and in touch with their congregations.

  “The local Baptist church pastor had a sabbatical and spent quite a bit of that time talking to all and sundry in a local financial institution. He was shocked by the pressures many people are facing, and had the opportunity to pray, and weep, with many of them.

  “On occasion, I have ‘shadowed’ members of the church for a day, and often arrange to visit people at their place of work during the lunchbreak. I have never failed to be thanked and appreciated when I have done this.”

• Church leaders often want to help, but they are unsure of just how to do it. Many lack confidence, or feel intimidated. It may be years since they were in that kind of working world, if ever. I’ve heard church leaders say, “I don’t know if what I’ve got is relevant”, or “I don’t know if I have anything to offer”.

  I want to say to every church leader: you will feel awkward, and you’ll probably feel inadequate to help a banker, medic, staff nurse, headmaster or stay-at-home mum. But in that moment of genuine weakness lies an open doorway. If you pluck up the courage to walk through that doorway with your weakness, feeling of intimidation, unsure that you have anything to offer, it may just be that God’s strength can begin to operate through you.

  Don’t feel under pressure to have lots of answers, or even any answers. It’s enough that you are involved - and what has great value is the affirmation you bring. This process is like the day you start a new job. There is apprehension, and the best thing to do is to let others lead you and have questions ready to learn.

  Every relationship and working environment will be different, with different opportunities and stress points. Let the process develop and don’t expect too much too soon. But do let it be known that you’re willing to stay involved for as long as it is helpful.

Follow the link if you’d like help in supporting your congregation as they engage in the workplace.

Last Updated 06 December 2010