To My Surprise, I Love My Work

In 2013 I was pretty sure I’d never love my work, ever again. I’d served as a full time pastor since 2001, and though I kept some small side jobs going for fun and a little income, I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything else as a vocation and finding it satisfying.

Discussion

Maybe You Need to Be Fired from Your Job

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“It was hard, but looking back after 30 years, it was one of the best things that’s ever happened to me. We finally stepped into our real calling, focused on what we knew we were supposed to be doing, and trusted God to help us chart a new path.” - Phil Cooke

Discussion

C. S. Forester’s Novels of Vocation

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“In the midst of his tension-filled mission and outbreaks of combat, Commander George Krause prays, reads his Bible, and employs Luther’s devotions. As we go inside his mind and point of view, we find that Scripture verses are always popping up in his head, and that he is constantly struggling with the sense of his sinfulness and his limits over against his faith.” - Veith

Discussion

Bringing Good Things Together: Work and Worship

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“The broader faith-and-work movement has long stressed a believer’s royal role in the creation mandate (Gen. 1:28), bringing order and goodness to the world through work.

Discussion

My Pastoral Moments as an Infectious Diseases Doctor

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“The Lord is our shepherd. He has already defeated death and is walking us to green pastures. This week, those green pastures may take the form of a timely diagnosis and an effective antibiotic that saves Jacob’s life. Another time, the Shepherd may have a more lasting pasture in mind” - TGC

Discussion

“...vocation–not just as a treatment of ‘jobs’ but as a theology of the everyday Christian life–is being rediscovered”

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“…vocation–the Latinate word for ‘calling’–involves God Himself working through and by means of human beings to bestow His blessings. Thus, He gives daily bread by means of farmers, millers, and bakers; He creates and cares for new human beings through the vocations… the purpose of every vocation is not self-fulfillment or performing great works for God, but loving and serving one’s neighbor.” - Veith

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