You're a 'Priest' at Work

You're a 'Priest' at Work

The Word For Today

'You are a...priesthood.' 1 Peter 2:9 NIV

In his book Habits of the Heart, sociologist Robert N. Bellah described three attitudes people have towards their work. The first group treats it as a job. When you do this, you see it strictly as a way to make money and pay the bills. Like the bumper sticker says, ‘I owe, I owe, so off to work I go.’ But if your main focus is on what you receive from your work, you’ll most likely come to resent it.



The second group approaches work as a career. Here your motivation will be higher, but your focus is on advancement and prestige. That means, however, when your career isn’t going well it can feel like your self–worth is on the line. The third group sees their job as their calling. Now, logically speaking, if there’s a ‘calling’ there must be someone making the call, right? That someone is God. You’re not the ‘caller’, you’re the ‘call–ee’, and any work that has meaning, that can be a blessing to people, and fulfils His purposes, is a calling.



A doctor or pastor might get sucked into treating work solely as a means of earning a good income, therefore they see it as just a job. On the other hand, a dustman may view what he does—making the world a cleaner place—as a calling. We’re not downgrading the importance of those who stand in pulpits and preach; we’re upgrading the importance of those who serve God forty hours a week in other jobs. The main thing is: when the job’s done well, bothwill hear the commendation, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.’ (Matthew 25:23 NIV)