Resources
Here are some valuable resources that we recommend.
Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God’s Work
In our opinion, this is the first book worth picking up if you’re looking to gain a better understanding for God’s role in your work and to begin to shape your own path for presenting your work as an offering to Him and service to others. You simply can’t go wrong in taking the time to read through this book.
By: Tim Keller and Katherine Leary Alsdorf
Work: It’s Purpose, Dignity and Transformation
Whether you’re teaching children in a preschool, operating a cash register at a fast-food restaurant, or performing complex surgeries in emergency situations— you have the power to do tremendous good. Providing historical background and inspiring stories of God-honoring workers, Doriani explains the Bible’s teaching on the nature, glory, misery, and eventual restoration of all kinds of work.
By: Daniel Doriani
The Gospel at Work: How the Gospel Gives New Purpose and Meaning to Our Jobs
Traeger and Gilbert unpack the powerful ways in which the gospel can transform how we do what we do, releasing us from the cultural pressures of both an all-consuming devotion and a punch-in, punch-out mentality – in order to find the freedom of a work ethic rooted in serving Christ.
By: Sebastian Traeger and Greg Gilbert
Work Matters: Lessons from Scripture
Stevens revisits more than twenty biblical accounts ― from Genesis to Revelation ― exploring through them the theological meaning of every sort of work, manual or intellectual, domestic or commercial. Taken together, his short, pithy reflections on these well-known Bible passages add up to a comprehensive, Bible-based theology of work ― one that will be equally useful for seminars, classes, Bible studies, and individuals seeking to grasp more fully the theological dimensions of their daily labor.
By: R. Paul Stevens
Creation Regained
In print for two decades, Wolters’ book provides an excellent formulation of an integrated Christian worldview that breaks down the false dichotomy between the sacred and secular and clearly lays out the call on Christians to participate in Christ’s redemption of all creation.
By: Albert Wolters
He Shines In All That’s Fair
By: Richard Mouw
The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Personal Conflict
By: Ken Sande
The Divine Conspiracy and The Divine Conspiracy Continued
In these two volumes, Willard masterfully addresses life-changing ways to be lead by God on a daily basis and guidance for using our positions to transform the world from the inside out.
By: Dallas Willard
Buy The Divine Conspiracy on Amazon
Buy The Divine Conspiracy Continued on Amazon
Celebration of Discipline
A classic work that explores the central spiritual practices of the Christian faith. Foster argues that “superficiality is the curse of our age….the desperate need today is not for a greater number of intelligent people, or gifted people, but for deep people” and then provides a practical road map for those looking to grow deeper.
By: Richard Foster
Raw Spirituality: The Rhythms of the Jesus Life
This is the read for all those who have felt a tension between developing their internal spiritual life and the pressures of outward service and work in the world. Smith takes readers on an honest journey toward establishing rhythms of integrating faith into daily life without the pressures of needing to be “super spiritual.”
By: Tom Smith
Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ
Willard takes a fresh approach to spiritual growth and outlines a pattern of transformation in six areas of life – thought, feeling, will, body, social context and soul. The practical process provides a simple way forward without the guilt or pursuit of perfectionism that many Christians wrestle with.
By: Dallas Willard
The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming
Nouwen beautifully unpacks the biblical story of the prodigal son. His exploration of the themes of homecoming, compassion and reconciliation are powerful for anyone looking to heal past hurts and to be empowered by grace to extend that same grace out to others in their work environments.
by Henri Nouwen
The Fabric of This World: Inquiries into Calling, Career Choice, and the Design of Human Work
Hardy presents an in-depth evangelical introduction on calling and its implications for human work. With a strong exploration of historical views of work and practical examples for today, this book is an excellent starting point for anyone seeking to better understand their work and vocation.
by Lee Hardy
The Call: Finding and Fulfilling God’s Purpose For Your Life
Why am I here? What is God’s call in my life? How do I fit God’s call with my own individuality? How should God’s calling affect my career, my plans for the future, and my concepts of success? Guinness unpacks the truth that God has a calling for each of us and provides guidance on responding to that call.
by Os Guiness
God at Work: Your Christian Vocation in All of Life
Veith takes on the reality that work can be hard and the daily grind is real. In response to the confusion and lack of purpose that many experience, he lays out a spiritual framework for answering questions like “how do I know what I should with my life?” and “what does it mean to be Christian businessperson, lawyer, construction worker, homemaker or whatever?”
by Gene Edward Veith
Visions of Vocation: Common Grace for the Common Good
Garber’s book is a compelling compilation of wisdom and stories of friends who have discerned how to love God’s world in the midst of real life. This is a recommended read for anyone desiring to understand the true virtue of vocation.
by Steven Garber
Calling All Years Good: Christian Vocation throughout Life’s Seasons
Do infants have a vocation? Do Alzheimer’s patients? In popular culture, vocation is often reduced to adult work or church ministry. Rarely do we consider childhood or old age as crucial times for commencing or culminating a life of faith in response to God’s calling.The authors cover six of life’s distinct seasons to build a cohesive framework for understanding calling throughout all of life.
by Kathleen Cahalan and Bonnie Miller-McLemore
Every Job A Parable: What Walmart Greeters, Nurses, and Astronauts Tell Us about God
Have you ever considered how a janitor reflects an image of the God who humbly cleans up our lives and makes all things new? Van Sloten’s stories are of regular people who are discovering God’s Kingdom in the midst of a wide variety of everyday work. Whether you’re working with your hands, in an office, in the service sector, or at home – you’ll be deeply encouraged in seeing how what you do in your work truly is a sacred calling.
by John Van Sloten
The Beauty of Manual Labor
This short web article provides a succinct yet powerful articulation of the history and value of manual labor throughout scripture and its application for us today.
by David Murray
Holy Work: Toward a Benedictine Theology of Manual Labor
Written in 1951 with a view towards those who had committed themselves to a communal monastic tradition, Sorg’s work nonetheless carries many deep applications for us today – diving into a deep theology that portrays mankind as co-creator with God.; taking the raw material that God has provided, making things of use and beauty… and bringing about a synthesis of cult, culture and cultivation.
by Dom Rembert Sorg
Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling
Crouch offers up a stirring and accessible manifesto calling all Christians – and especially those in the arts and other creative fields – to passionately express their God-given creative abilities to influence the world around us. Whether you’re making paintings, chairs, omelets or laws – creating new “cultural goods” in partnership with God has the potential to deeply refresh and transform your surroundings.
by Andy Crouch
Glory in the Ordinary: Why Your Work in the Home Matters to God
In this encouraging book, Courtney Reissig combats the common misconceptions about the value of at-home work―helping us see how Christ infuses purpose into every facet of the ordinary. As image bearers of the Creator who made us to work, those who work in the home contribute to society, bringing order out of chaos and loving God through loving others―meaning there’s glory in every moment.
by Courtney Reissig
Missional Motherhood: The Everyday Ministry of Motherhood in the Grand Plan of God
In this book, Gloria Furman searches the Scriptures for the mission of God in motherhood. She opens our eyes to God’s life-giving promises―promises intended to empower each and every woman as she makes disciples in her home, in her neighborhood, and around the world.
by Gloria Furman
Risen Motherhood: Gospel Hope for Everyday Moments
Jensen and Wifler explore how closely the gospel connects with today’s moms as they seek to integrate their faith into the everyday realities of raising children and managing households.
by Emily Jensen and Laura Wifler
Why Business Matters to God: (And What Still Needs to be Fixed)
This book explores the nature and meaning of doing business and finds it calls for much more than most think. Van Duzer presents a profoundly Christian approach that integrates biblical studies with the disciplines of business and economics. Looking beyond the place of ethical principles and the character of the individual, Van Duzer displays a vision of business that contributes to the very purposes of God.
by Jeff Van Duzer
Doing God’s Business: Meaning and Motivation for the Marketplace
Stevens shares how readers can find lasting and satisfying meaning for marketplace involvement in the light of the Christian faith and tradition. He explores the potential of business as a location for practicing everyday spiritual disciplines and as a source of creativity and deeper relationship with God.
by R. Paul Stevens
6 Ways To Love Your Neighbor Through Business
This short 22-page downloadable PDF is a quick read that provides simple ways for any business leader to live out their faith through their business.
by the Denver Institute for Faith and Work
Redeeming Law: Christian Calling and the Legal Profession
Law Professor Michael Schutt believes Christians in the legal profession should regard it as a sacred calling and offers this book as a resource for reconceiving the theoretical foundations of law and gives practical guidance for maintaining integrity within a challenging profession.
by Michael Schutt
Called to Care: A Christian Worldview for Nursing
Shelly and Miller define nursing for today based on a historically and theologically grounded understanding of the nurse’s call: Nursing is a ministry of compassionate care for the whole person, in response to God’s grace toward a sinful world, which aims to foster optimum health (shalom) and bring comfort in suffering and death for anyone in need. Called to Care asserts that nursing is a vocation, giving nurses a framework for understanding their mission and living out their calling: service to God through caring for others
by Judith Shelly and Arlene Miller
Christian Teachers in Public Schools: 13 Essentials for the Classroom
Any educator in the public school system will quickly tell you – it’s tough out there! Full of personal anecdotes, useful and practical insights, and scriptures for survival in the classroom, this book will encourage and equip Christian educators, no matter what grade they teach.
by Darlene Parker
Kingdom Calling: Vocational Stewardship for the Common Good (December 9, 2020)
Dr. Amy Sherman joined us a virtual session to discuss ideas from her award-winning book, Kingdom Calling: Vocational Stewardship for the Common Good. (The recorded video missed the first few minutes of introduction but the rest of the video is still great!)
Decision-Making at Work: How to Insert Spiritual Discernment (October 14, 2020)
Ryan Cochran, Senior Pastor at Broadway Christian Church, and Myron Yoder, Technology Entrepreneur joined us to share their insights on how we can become more attuned to God’s leading in our everyday work lives.
Navigating Conflict at Work (September 16, 2020)
Cedric Walker, Senior Pastor at Joshua’s Temple Missionary Baptist Church, and Victor Small from Brotherhood Mutual shared with us about how to maintain a Christ-centered approach to difficult situations and conversations at work.
Discovering Your Calling (August 19, 2020)
Ron Williams, Senior Pastor at Pathway Community Church, and Brendon Maxwell, Owner of Utopian Coffee, share how our view of God’s calling changes everything about how we approach our daily work.
Working for Human Flourishing (March 5, 2020)
Christ Horst, Chief Advancement Officer at HOPE International and Founding Board Member of the Denver Institute for Faith and Work, shares some practical ways that we can extend God’s love into our everyday work.
Does My Daily Work Matter To God? (February 5, 2020)
Tony Opliger, Pastor of Teaching at Northeast Christian Church, guides us through a conversation about the ways in which God uses our normal everyday work to bring about his order, beauty and abundance.
The Goodness Of Welding
Steve Lauer has been working as a welder for over 30 years. We sat down with him at his employer, Fort Wayne Metals, to learn more about the goodness of his work, how he sees God using his work for the world, and how he finds purpose in his daily routine.
Finding Hope in Brokenness
We spoke with Natalie and Ezra to learn more about how they’ve experienced brokenness in the work of motherhood – and how they pursue a hope that brings peace and joy.
Redeeming Work Through Human Resources
We sat down with Chad Edmonds from Parkview Health to talk about how he pursues God’s redemption of his work environment in his role as an HR Organizational Development Specialist. Check out this quick 5 minute video to be encouraged in how God can use you in the redemption of your own work.
A Prayer for The Work of Our Region
Northeast Indiana is filled with hundreds of thousands of individuals who walk into work every day and, in so doing, play a critical role in helping our region flourish. This is our prayer for them.