When we look close, we find out that we are built to work. We were created to cultivate. During this episode we contrast the current view of work with the original view of work based on God's word. Holy Profits Radio (http://www.holyprofitsradio.com) airs live each Saturday on 95.7 WGNW LP The Choice (Candler), is hosted by Bradley Waldrop and a production of Chrysalis Consulting, LLC (http://www.leading4achange.com).
Transcript:
Table of Contents
Announcer:
Welcome to Holy Profits Radio, a business show that applies God's word to your work. Discussing business basics ranging from starting your own company to complex human resource challenges. Check out our complete schedule, archive shows, helpful downloads, and much more at holyprofitsradio.com. Now, get ready to be part of the revolution by applying biblical truths to your work with Holy Profits Radio hosted by me, Bradley Waldrop.
Introduction and Recent Updates
Bradley Waldrop:
Well, good morning, and welcome back to the show. Welcome to the show, I guess. Back to the show because we've been off the air for a couple of weeks.
Announcer:
For those of you who don't know, we have changed the location of the radio station, or at least the studio. With all of that, boy, it's really kind of interesting to see everything plugged in a little bit differently, people in different spaces. We're still trying to figure it all out, but we're on the air, and that's a beautiful thing.
The Importance of Work
Bradley Waldrop:
This week, we're gonna talk about work and work in general. I'm not sure how many people know, but the word work or some facsimile of work has been mentioned 886 times in the Bible. 886 times—that sounds pretty important. And I thought that if you all had all day long, we would just go through each one, 886 of them, one at a time, and talk about them. No, I'm just kidding. We're not gonna do that.
Recap: Previous Show on Missions
Bradley Waldrop:
But we did talk last time we were on the radio a couple of weeks ago about the seven principles your business needs to know about serving missions. We talked to Karen Cowan in town here about how businesses could get involved, how businesses could participate in the mission field, the local mission field, and how valuable it is to have those types of resources here in town and wherever you are.
The Perception of Work
Bradley Waldrop:
This week, we're gonna talk about work, and it's a four-letter word. I mean, how many times have you really thought about what "thank God it's Friday" means, right? We race to the weekend like nothing I've ever seen anywhere else. If you talk to people at work, hump day is right in the middle, right? It's Wednesday, and we're ready for the weekend already. And then, Friday, Friday is kind of a funny thing.
Friday Work Culture
Bradley Waldrop:
It became very vogue to do half-day Fridays, which meant that you were going to work really hard Monday through Thursday, nine hours or so. And then you would take four hours off on the weekend, or to add to your weekend on Friday. And then what started to happen fundamentally at work was that you ended up working, I don't know, eight hours or seven and a half hours Monday through Thursday and still taking half-day Friday. Friday's a casual day. We race to this crazy weekend.
Personal Anecdote
Bradley Waldrop:
I used to work for a company where Fridays were almost a, I don't know, somewhat funny ritual. You had one of two options. You either went golfing first thing in the morning, got nine holes in before you went to the office, and then you sort of lazed around a little bit and did whatever you could do to make up the time until the end of the day, and then you bolted. Or you came in a little bit early, worked a few hours, but were influenced by friends.
The Work-Weekend Balance
Bradley Waldrop:
In fact, I lived in the Sacramento area. And the Sacramento area, for those of you who don't know, is only about two to two and a half hours away from South Lake Tahoe. In the summertime, South Lake Tahoe is a great place to do off-roading. It's a great place to do backpacking, lots of outdoor activities, as well as the casinos that are there in South Lake Tahoe, part of the Nevada gaming facilities. You can get distracted there, and then in the winter, if you've never been skiing in the Sierras, you're missing something.
The Drag of Work
Bradley Waldrop:
If you're the sort of person that races to the weekend, this show is for you. I think we all have this pressure in society to get to the weekend as fast as we possibly can. Work can be an absolute drag sometimes. Pay attention to what's happening right now if it is a drag in the office. People are talking about doing more with less. People are getting laid off. Work environment is really tough right now, so it's very hard to feel like work is a good thing.
God's Plan for Work
Bradley Waldrop:
We're gonna walk through what God's plan is in work, and then we're gonna talk about how to apply it to your business. Get ready because there could be a paradigm shift here for you. It might take a little while for it all to sink in. If you go back and look at the Genesis era, for those of you who have never heard the show before, one of the things that's so great about this show, from my perspective, is that God put it on my heart a few months ago that the Bible is really the CEO's guide to the galaxy, and it's split up into different eras.
Genesis and Work
Bradley Waldrop:
Those eras are historic eras in the Old and New Testaments. Each one of those eras has a direct parallel to business. We've looped all the way through the eras, and we're going right back into the Genesis era. We'll do that throughout the year. We'll go through each era, pick out a particular story or idea, apply it to your work, and then the next show will hit the next era. We'll keep doing that.
Upcoming Guests and Topics
Bradley Waldrop:
We've got fantastic guests coming on. We're going to have Pure Ministries on, talking about how to have a workplace that integrates all of God's wonderful creations. We're going to talk about business finances, so you can get to a position of giving and be a cheerful giver. We're also going to talk about ethics in business, featuring an ex-felon who has experienced the temptations of power and money. Stay tuned to the schedule. You can find all that information on our website, holyprofitsradio.com, and on our Facebook page at facebook.com/holyprofits.
Embracing Work as Part of Creation
Bradley Waldrop:
Let's get going on the Genesis deal. The Genesis deal is interesting because, in the creation story, God is working. God works every day. He examines the work, says it's good, and then moves on to the next day. By the sixth day, He's created, and then He takes a break. All of that to say that's very good stuff. If you look at Genesis 2:5, you'll see that God actually refers to man working. Everything is prepared, but there is no man to cultivate the ground.
The Role of Cultivation
Bradley Waldrop:
We were brought onto the earth to work and cultivate. That cultivating process is working the land to provide for ourselves. It's using the resources we're given to provide for ourselves and others. The concept of working at a business wasn't part of the creation story, but throughout the Bible, different people worked as shepherds, carpenters, farmers, tax collectors, and market owners. At this beginning, if we understand that God created us in His image, we're created to work. We're created to cultivate.
The Challenges of Work Post-Fall
Bradley Waldrop:
Why is it so difficult to go to work every day? Why is it difficult to farm and produce? It has to do with the fall of man. If you remember the story of the Garden of Eden and the Forbidden Fruit, as man defied God, there were two or three things that happened. We were eternally separated from God because of our own actions and behaviors. Childbirth for women became ultra-hard. The ground became more difficult for us to cultivate. Scripture says, "I'm gonna remove you from where it was easy. I'm gonna put you where it's hard." Hard work is intentional.
Applying Biblical Principles to Modern Work
Bradley Waldrop:
We're gonna talk about how this applies to our work when we come back from a break. Think about what life looks like when you go to work, your attitude toward work, how you were crafted to work, and how difficult it is. Know that difficulty is intentional. Work is not supposed to be easy. If you like what you're doing, it's easier, but work is still work. It is a four-letter word, but I have something to share from a friend about other four-letter words within God's plan for work.
Intermission
Announcer:
Asheville's Choice, 95.7.
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Work and Retirement
Bradley Waldrop:
Welcome back to Holy Profits Radio. We're here giggling a little bit because we're in a new facility. The new facility has people walking by doors we don't recognize, people walking by the window and waving in, banging on the outside with some hammers. It is a little bit new and different here, and we're just trying to understand all of that, but it has been a really fun time today.
When we were going off to the break, we were talking about this concept of work and how hard work is sometimes. Why it seems in our society to be a four-letter word and most of us, I don't think, realize that God's original intent was for us to work. One of the things I didn't mention before the break, and I had intended to, is this idea of retirement is actually a brand new idea. If you go back and look at the biblical understanding of how long people were to work, they were to work until they were physically unable to work, and then they were to be supported by their family and the community, not necessarily by the government or any other structure like that.
Biblical Perspective on Retirement
Bradley Waldrop:
The only place in the Bible that really references retirement has to do with the Levites who were building the temple. I don't know about you, but I'm not a Levite. That means that I think what God is asking for me to do is continue to work as long as I'm physically able. I think that's because we're wired to work, and we want to be able to provide some sort of value back into what it is we do. We are wired to provide in a way that's super unique, so we should embrace that.
One of the ways we can embrace that is when someone offers to help, consider what that means. They're wired to work, and when you say yes, it allows them to bless you. It allows them to participate in what they are crafted to do. It allows them to have an identity that's much bigger than themselves. Consider that when someone offers to help, whether you're at work or at home.
Cultivating Ideas and People
Bradley Waldrop:
The whole idea of cultivation. We are built to cultivate. At work, we cultivate ideas. Not everything is physical labor, but we do have new ideas that we need to move forward and understand that requires work, creativity, organizing thoughts, planning, and moving forward. That has to do with new products and services, better ways to do things, and ways to honor God in the work that you are doing.
When you're at the office, this cultivating of ideas, new products, and services—we're wired to do that. Find people around you that can participate so that they can provide their gifts back to the business. It's easy in a company to pigeonhole people. They're very good at doing a certain something. They're also creative individuals. They're there to create, they're there to work, and if they have a unique perspective on what you're doing, it's beneficial for you to hear what that is.
Mentoring and Building into People
Bradley Waldrop:
The other bit at work that we cultivate is people. We were talking about people here before we started the show. Every one of us does things differently. We have different abilities. It's not unusual for you to delegate or work with individuals and for them to make mistakes. We're all in different places, and if we want to grow an organization, we have to be willing to put ourselves out there to make mistakes. We're hoping that the organization understands that those mistakes are part of the process.
Make sure you're building into your employees, peers, and those working in non-supervisory roles. Show others in the organization how to do something better, faster, more efficient. That process of building ourselves and building into one another is part of that cultivating process. People are a mix of mental, physical, and spiritual.
When we're building into people on the mental side, it's knowledge, testing, brain games, new skills, messing up, and learning from mistakes. Allow people some latitude to do that. Train in a way that allows people to make mistakes without risking a lot of money, time, or customers.
Physical and Spiritual Needs at Work
Bradley Waldrop:
When we cultivate people, we also focus on their physical needs. Positive and productive work conditions, opportunities, and encouragement for exercise. If you work in an office environment, go outside for a walk every once in a while. Encourage physical exercise. Provide a healthy office space.
The spiritual piece is crucial too. Participating in work with others who care about our well-being and profess their faith in Christ is an amazing thing. We're created for work. You can read into this, "God said He worked for six days and took the Sabbath off the seventh day." Therefore, I'm gonna work six days, 24 hours a day, and take one day off. Pause and say, you might be a workaholic if you choose to do that. It's not biblical to work yourself to the bone without a break.
God rested to admire His creation. We need to do the same. Rest so we can focus and have the resources necessary to move forward the next day.
Work as Worship
Bradley Waldrop:
You can view work for yourself or view work as worship. This is where it gets really hard for most of us. I know I struggle with working and then looking back and saying, "Wow, look at what I did. I'm so good at what I do." But what's amazing is that every time I turn around, there's always somebody who's better at it than I am. No matter how hard I try to be really great at something, it just doesn't turn out that way.
We need to understand that the work we do is really worship to the God who created us with the skills we have, the visions He's given us, and to honor Him in all of that, not build our own crazy kingdom in the corner office. Let me share two verses out of the New Testament that might help put it in perspective.
Biblical Verses on Work
Bradley Waldrop:
First, Corinthians 10:31 says, "Whether then you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." This is focusing on God rather than on us, which is super important to remember.
Next, Colossians 3:23, one of my favorite verses in the Bible: "Whatever you do, do your work heartily as for the Lord rather than for men." You may not be happy with your boss, the board of directors, your team, or your peers. The deal is, God is your CEO. God is who you're serving at work.
Whatever you do, do your work heartily as for the Lord rather than for men. That changes your perspective. It allows you to put up with the jerk in the office and allows for the beauty of God's grace to come through your life. If you're bitter and angry, it's gonna be a problem for the entire organization.
Embracing a God-Centered Work Ethic
Announcer:
Christians, listen to me. If you're not a Christian, I'd love to talk to you about that. For those of you who are Christians, really think about Colossians 3:23. Whatever you do, do your work heartily as for the Lord rather than for men.
Transforming Work from a Burden to a Blessing
Bradley Waldrop:
Go to work with God as your boss. That changes work from a negative four-letter word to a positive four-letter word. A buddy of mine knew the show I was gonna do and sent me an email. Hey, Scott, if you're listening, thanks for this. He works for a nonprofit called His Way at Work. Scott writes, "Yes, work is a four-letter word, but so are love, care, give, hope, team, lead, which are all part of God's original design for work."
How great is that? To take the concept of work, a four-letter word with a negative connotation, and compare it to positive four-letter words like love, care, give, hope, team, and lead. All of which are part of God's original design for work. Imagine what life could be like if we changed our view of work. Instead of seeing it as a negative four-letter word, include the positive four-letter words of love, care, give, hope, team, and lead. It transforms our daily work, brings joy, and allows us to live out what God created us to do.
Preview of Next Week's Show
Bradley Waldrop:
Next week, we are going to take on the concept of what life looks like as the second CEO in an organization. The second CEO often gets dumped on because they're not like the founder. There are great stories in the patriarch era, and we'll explore the parallels to prepare a CEO, especially in a family-owned company. How to hand over the reins without losing the big ideas. We'll talk about that next week. If you have questions about the show, comments, please send me an email at bradley@holyprofitsradio.com. Visit our Facebook page at facebook.com/holyprofits. Go to our website at holyprofitsradio.com. May God richly bless you and your business.
Unleash the Power of God’s Blessings in Your Business with Bradley Waldrop – A True Authority in Business Integrity Matters
As a founding board member of Jacob’s House and The Joseph Initiative, a steering committee member for University of California, Riverside’s A.Gary Anderson Graduate School of Management, and the winner of the fastest growing small business inside a leading international professional services business, I have the knowledge and experience to help you navigate the challenges of business integrity matters. My role as an author, small group study leader, change agent, and non-profit board member, along with my past experience as a men’s ministry director and successful business leader, uniquely qualifies me to help Christian business owners honor and glorify God in their businesses.
It’s time to take your business to the next level by aligning your goals with God’s blessings and honoring Him through your business practices. I will inspire you to tap into the power of God’s blessings and provide you with practical strategies to integrate faith-based principles into your business operations. Together, we can make a positive impact in the business world while honoring God in all that we do.
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