There's Just One Tier of Believers in the Kingdom!

The body of Christ is made up of many parts; none is more important than the other.  (1 Cor 12:12)  

Do you really believe this statement?  Do you ever feel unimportant in the Kingdom of God?  Like who you are and what you do is on a lower tier while others are on a higher one?  I sure did. I was so frustrated because I knew I had a call on my life to full-time ministry, but I WAS NOT a fit for being a church pastor. I also knew I was an entrepreneur.  I could not reconcile the pull between the two.  I thought they were polar opposite callings.  Boy, was I wrong!  

Modern church culture emphasizes the importance and prestige of working in full-time ministry as a pastor, foreign missionary, or the like.  There’s a theological misunderstanding that the top jobs in the Kingdom are missionary and pastor, but that’s simply not true!  There is no “tiered system” in the Kingdom of God.  All parts are critical.  Pulpit Pastor and Foreign Missionary are just two of the critical jobs.  We need to grasp that our ministry can happen wherever we go and in whatever we do.  Call to mind the familiar Bible verse 1 Corinthians 10:31: “So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” All. That means all jobs, in all situations.  

I don’t want you to waste your time thinking, “I just want to quit my job and go into full-time ministry!” You don’t need to quit your job to do this.  You just have to shift your mind to a new way of thinking – as it says in Romans 12:2: “Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think." When we change the way we think, we see the wide world in front of us, the people God uniquely put in front of us to love on and be Jesus to. The people we need to pray for and eventually pray with.  The people we need to introduce to Jesus through the vibrant living out of our faith.  

This week we pay special attention to you, the everyday workplace believer, and your role in bringing God's Kingdom here to earth. Just because you're not a pulpit pastor or a foreign missionary doesn't mean you're not in full-time ministry. Your workplace is your mission field!  And in that mission field, you may be the only Jesus that your coworkers, vendors, supervisors, or clients ever meet.  The job that you hold, the work that you do, and the people you work with - none of that is a coincidence! Those around you need to meet Jesus, and you may be their only chance.  

So, stop the wrong thinking that you should quit your job so you can go into ministry. That mindset makes you think less of yourself and your giftings, and that's not right. Take the time to shift your thinking to seeing your job as a ministry on a mission field of lost and hopeless people.  

Martha and I talk with Charlie Self about tiering in the kingdom in this week's podcast. Be sure to give it a listen!

TAKE THIS TOPIC FURTHER:

Listen to or watch show 2001: You’re a 1st-Tier Citizen

Subscribe to the daily iWork4Him PowerThoughts

About the Author, Jim Brangenberg

Jim's Mission: We are called to be examples of Christ to those around us. With that in mind, Jim is passionate about helping Christ followers connect their faith to their work!

What's Your iWork4Him Story?

It all started with my new job. Commuting 90 miles to work. I made a commitment to not turn on the radio for the morning commute. I wanted to learn how to pray. My new job had so much adventure built in, but I wanted this job to be different. I prayed for my family on the way to work and others who had specific prayer requests, but then my world got rocked. One day, in my email inbox, my friend Bob sent me the Today God is First devotional from Os Hillman. For the first time in my life, I learned that God loved my work and that my workplace was my mission field. I was floored. For years I had tried to go into full-time ministry in a church, but this devotional told me that I was in ministry already and my workplace was my mission field.  The paradigm shift began in my thinking.  

With the new reality that my work was, in fact, my place of ministry, my workplace mission field, I modified my workplace commute prayer time. I still prayed for my family, but I added my bosses, my coworkers, and eventually my employees. I noticed a funny thing happening. I started to see these people differently. I think I was seeing them the way God saw them. I grew in empathy and love for them, and I really started seeing myself as a minister in my workplace. Now, mind you, it was a real job with real demands and deadlines; but when I could, I started to serve my co-workers over and above what I was required to do. This selfless serving of others caused them to see that something was different about me. I started to see my faith relevant to my work. My paradigm was shifting, and my heart was encouraged.   

I knew that more was needed to shift my faith paradigm at work. I needed to really know the people I worked with. Martha and I started creating ways to get to know people outside of work to develop real lifetime relationships. We had people over for dinner, we went out after work, we ate lunch together. I made it my intention to know more about them as people than just what their job had them doing. I learned their spouses’ names, their kids’ names. I learned what bothered them and what encouraged them. At the same time, I let them know who I was. I shared about my family, my dreams, my struggles. We just shared life. I started to see the real people I worked with. And I began to see something.  

When you work with someone day in and day out, you start to know what their normal is. After I started praying for people, I had a better sense when things were off. I could tell when their demeanor was different, when they weren’t doing okay. I learned to ask, “How are you doing today?” and I really wanted to know the answer. When they responded with “I’m fine,” then I would respond: “Really? Freaked out, Insecure, Neurotic, and Emotional? Really, how are you doing?” Then I would be quiet and let them share what was really going on. When they were done sharing something from their heart, I learned to say, “Thanks for sharing that with me. Can I pray about that with you right now?” I never got turned down.  Mind you, this took a couple of years to develop, but you can do it, too.  

God taught me how to shift the paradigm of work into a place of work interlaced with ministry, but none of these actions would have mattered if my work wasn’t excellent. Excellence needs to define who we are at work. Looking back, I made plenty of mistakes along the way, but I was able to pray with tons of people, made lifelong friends, and even participated in leading one of my bosses to Jesus and another to rededication.  iWork4Him was born out of this story. Would you take the time to tell us your “iWork4Him” story? 

Take this topic further:

Listen to or watch shows 1999: The Birth of iWork4Him and 2000: iWork4Him 101

Subscribe to the daily iWork4Him PowerThoughts

About the Author, Jim Brangenberg

Jim's Mission: We are called to be examples of Christ to those around us. With that in mind, Jim is passionate about helping Christ followers connect their faith to their work!

Living a Fully Integrated Life

Kathy Book was a high-level manager in a nationwide grocery chain. Outside of work, she was a Christian, but while she was at work, she didn't act so "Christian." But everything changed one day when her boss pulled her aside to have a hard conversation.

In Chapter 21 of our new book, iWork4Him: Change the way you think about Faith and Work, Kathy writes, "my manager pulled me into her office and said 'I know you go to church, serve at youth group, and feed the homeless but why are you a different person when you are here at work?'"

Talk about a wake-up call! At the time, Kathy didn't know how to respond. But eventually, she quit her job to figure it out. During this transition period, Kathy really discovered what it means to be a Christ following woman in the Marketplace. A revelation that ended with her starting a ministry aptly called Women in the Marketplace.

Kathy's experience isn't an anomaly; my own story mirrors it in many ways (minus the "woman" portion, of course). What about you? Do the people you work with on Monday see the same person that your pastor sees on Sunday?

Kathy Book's contributor chapter in iWork4Him is all about living an integrated life. A life where faith impacts and influences everything. And, interestingly enough, Kathy not only started the ministry of Women in the Marketplace but also recently turned the ministry over to a new leader so that she could back into the Marketplace and put all she'd learned about living an integrated life into action back in the grocery chain world. Talk about a major turnaround!

So, do you need to quit your job to figure out how to live an integrated life? Lucky for you, the answer is NOPE. iWork4Him and thousands of other ministries and podcasts have dedicated themselves to equipping you to live out your faith vibrantly in the workplace! To find a voice that will inspire you all week long, check out the Awaken Podcast Network – the home of over 130 faith and work podcasts, or pick up a copy of the iWork4Him book (bonus, CLICK HERE to get the first chapter for FREE.)

Learn from Kathy and others like me because Jesus saved all of you, especially your workplace you. Why? Because God is love, and God's will is for everyone you encounter on a daily basis to meet Him through you.

 Jim

About the Author, Jim Brangenberg

Jim's Mission: We are called to be examples of Christ to those around us. With that in mind, Jim is passionate about helping Christ followers connect their faith to their work!

Words To Understand: Part 2

Pastor and Minister

Last week we talked about the word Pastor and the fact that you do not have to quit your job in order to be one. You can do a Romans 12:2 paradigm shift and be a pastor right there in your workplace and your neighborhood, even your small group. Pastor isn’t about a title, it is about a calling and an attitude. You are surrounded by people who need to be led to Jesus, so Pastor them.

Now for the rest of you who think:

“It would be so fulfilling to quit my job and do ministry all day long.”

STOP! The enemy has done such a great job of pigeonholing Christians into a building with which ministry is being done. ENOUGH of this stupid thinking. The enemy cordoned us off in a building while he was out deceiving the masses who don’t want to enter that meeting place.

Have you ever considered that the Body of Christ is spread out all over the world, in every imaginable workplace SO THAT MINISTRY can be done there? You are a minister of Jesus to the masses that you work with. You are there in your workplace or retirement place to teach the lost to be found. You are there to minister to the least of these. You are there to set the captives free. IF YOU LEAVE YOUR WORKPLACE who will take your place and do the ministry that YOU WERE REALLY CALLED to?

You are in ministry. You have been since the day Jesus found you. All around you are hurting and lost people. They don’t know your “church” pastor, they know you. They trust you. They need you. PLEASE DON’T QUIT.

For daily challenges like this, tune into iWork4Him

About the Author, Jim Brangenberg

Jim's Mission: We are called to be examples of Christ to those around us. With that in mind, Jim is passionate about helping Christ followers connect their faith to their work!

Words To Understand: Part 1

Pastor & Minister

IF I have heard it a million times, I have heard it once (but I really have heard it a million times):

“I just wish I could quit my job and be a Pastor. I wish I could just work in a church so I could do ministry” 

Those words make my heart sink, not because we don’t need people working at the church and preaching, but because they may be missing the ministry that God has for them at their work now. There is so much misunderstanding in those statements you could write a book about it. 

I’m not going to write a book, I just want to write this blog.

What is a Pastor? A pastor is a shepherd, a leader who cares deeply for and leads his/her sheep.  The Way of the Shepherd by Kevin Leman is my favorite book on this topic.  When you are a manager or leader or business owner, you can be a pastor to your people, right there in your workplace.    You don’t need to go to a building that houses the church on Sunday in order to be a pastor, you can train up to be one right where you work.  You don’t need to be ordained to be a pastor in your workplace.  You just need to love people above yourself and lead them to Jesus through caring for their needs.

So enough of thinking “I wish I could quit my job and go be a pastor in a little “c” church.”  You can do a Romans 12:2 paradigm shift and be a pastor right NOW in your workplace and your neighborhood, even your small group.  

What does Our Heavenly Father have to say about this with regards to you and your life – I don’t know just listen to Him! 

What is the difference between Pastor and Minister?  Lets talk about that next week

About the Author, Jim Brangenberg

Jim's Mission: We are called to be examples of Christ to those around us. With that in mind, Jim is passionate about helping Christ followers connect their faith to their work!

Word To Understand:

Church

We have heard our listeners say things like:

“I hate my work environment, I wish I could work at a church.”

What do they really mean when they say the word “church”?

The church was Jesus’s idea. The church was another word for a gathering of Christ followers. The church is the church wherever it gathers. The church is not defined by a building. If Jesus had wanted us to build a bunch of buildings, he probably would have downloaded a few blueprints for us like our Father did for King David. No, the Church isn’t a building and the Church is everywhere: in our neighborhoods, in our workplaces and of course in the 4 walls building we also call a church.

There is the Big “C” church – the whole entire complete Body of Christ and the little “c” church - which is the building we meet in on Sunday. Please, I beg you to stop saying that you wish you worked at a church. You are the church! You are part of the Body of Christ. Some of you are a mouth and some of you are corpuscles but all of you are CRITICALLY important to the mission set before us by Christ.

Your workplace can be a “c” church if you gather with others to pray and meet. You bring the big “C” church into your workplace because you are part of the Body of Christ. Church is not a word defined by buildings, it is defined by your heart. You want to see a difference in your workplace, believe you are part of the “C” church when you walk through the doors of your workplace today. Check out www.iWork4Him.com/jointheNation

About the Author, Jim Brangenberg

Jim's Mission: We are called to be examples of Christ to those around us. With that in mind, Jim is passionate about helping Christ followers connect their faith to their work!

Words We Just Don’t Use Any More: Parachurch

Since the beginning of the church, the Body of Christ has struggled with unity.

“I follow Paul”

“I follow Apollos”

“I follow Jesus”.

In the early church they struggled with division and taking sides, and many still struggle today.

Until now. Inside the religious institution of the 4 walls church, there are 45,000 denominations worldwide. 45,000! How does that match up with John 17:20-23? Jesus wanted us to move towards complete unity. This unity hasn’t happened, until now. No longer are there “churches” and “para church ministries”, those are diving words. Everywhere the body of Christ is scattered around the globe, it is THE Church. It is free from division and making an impact.

How do I know…Martha and I have been experiencing it.

Since 2006 I have been studying the Faith and Work Movement and for the past 6 ½ years we have been the Media mouthpiece for it. So much time invested in highlighting what God is doing in the workplaces of our country.

What have we seen?

When the Body of Christ is outside the 4 walls church the body of Christ is unified in reaching the workplaces of this country. There are over 3000 Faith and Work Ministries in this country and all of them are unified with the sole task of discipling Christ Followers to live out their faith in their work. Not one person is in charge of this movement. The Holy Spirit is in charge and He is raising up men and women from every occupation to speak Truth into work and redeem work from the enemy. Work was God’s idea and He is out to transform the workplaces of our country.

So let’s not bring division into the Body of Christ. Stop thinking there is a little “c” church or parachurch, we are THE Church and it was Jesus’ idea.

Have fun in your mission field this week.

Jim

About the Author, Jim Brangenberg

Jim's Mission: We are called to be examples of Christ to those around us. With that in mind, Jim is passionate about helping Christ followers connect their faith to their work!

Why Was "Cheers" So Successful?

Imagine a place where everyone knows your name.

They care about you. Everyone is nice to you. Everything around you is being perfectly orchestrated to bring you a little happiness. I know, its sounds like Heaven or the opening to the old hit TV show "Cheers" that I've been watching lately. I believe this idea might be key to experiencing a little bit of Heaven here on Earth. Read on.

What is your workplace like for you? Do people know your name? Are they nice to you and care about your happiness? Do you know their names and welcome them into a non-judging environment?

Imagine if every person who calls themselves a Christian actually saw their workplace as more than an income stream, but a place of ministry. Imagine if every Christian saw their workplace full of hurting people who need to meet Jesus, as an opportunity to get paid to do mission work every day. If we love everyone, even the grouchiest people, and do excellent work, our workplace will be magical, almost like Heaven.

The show, “Cheers”, resonated with so many people over the years because everyone was welcome, their name was known, and they were served kindness. Love breaks down the largest barriers and bridges gaps. You do not need to quit your job in order to "Go" into ministry, all you need to do is shift your paradigm. You already are on mission and in ministry. Love the people around you in your workplace and serve them kindness. Check out the iWork4Him Nation today. It can be a great step in shifting your paradigm.

Jim

iWork4Him exists to transform the workplace of every Christian into a mission field.

About the Author, Jim Brangenberg

Jim's Mission: We are called to be examples of Christ to those around us. With that in mind, Jim is passionate about helping Christ followers connect their faith to their work!

"Here I Am, Send Me!"

Let me tell you a story of two young teenagers.

Forty years ago, their lives intersected at a youth conference in San Diego, Ca. After a week of talent competition and nightly rallies, the closing session was on Friday night July 13, 1979. The speaker challenged the teens to commit to full time Christian ministry for their lives. These 2 teens both made that commitment on the same night - declaring:

"Here I am, send me." Isaiah 6:8

Three years later these 2 teens, Jim and I, would finally meet each other, become best friends and get married. We both believed that our commitment in 1979 meant we were to be full-time pastors or missionaries. God kept us from attending seminary but we struggled with how we would fulfill our commitment while we worked our "secular" jobs.

Fast forward a few decades and we slowly started to understand that our work was our ministry and our mission field. What a liberating way to live! To know that God had gifted us as entrepreneurs to be missionaries right where we conducted business every day.

It's been 40 years since the day we committed ourselves to full time ministry, if only we understood that all 40 years we have been serving in ministry (at work). Now, Jim and I have the pleasure of helping our radio and podcast listeners understand what we really committed to 40 years ago - living in full time ministry every day. We don't live with regret, but we do live more intentionally - understanding that "our workplace is our mission field, and in that mission field we may be the only Jesus our co-workers and employees ever see."

I'm grateful to have been challenged as a teen to make a commitment, and hope that you too will commit to "Here I am, send me (to my workplace each day)". You might consider joining the iWork4Him Nation as a great first step towards this commitment.

Happy 40 years of ministry together!

About the Author, Martha Brangenberg

Born into an entrepreneurial family, Martha has been involved in small business her entire life. Gifted with an attention to detail and a sweet sensitive spirit, Martha is a servant leader with a deep faith in Jesus.

Please Stop Using This Word

"Jim, you're not cut out to be a pastor. You could never handle having 400 bosses. It's ok, you can be a lay minister. The church needs lots of volunteers."

Oh, my church pastor missed a huge opportunity to send me in the right direction there on that day.

Read on.

On July 13, 1979 I committed my life to full-time Christian Ministry, so did Martha on that very same day (3 years before we met). Now, naturally, I thought that meant that I would be working within a 4-walls church because that is what I grew up hearing.

When I finished college, Martha and I settled in a little town called Lakeville, MN. We joined a local church and we immediately got involved in the youth ministry as volunteers. After Martha finished college, I enrolled in Seminary to get my master's degree so Martha and I could fulfill my commitment to the Lord. My church pastor found out and he spoke those words above to me. I unenrolled in seminary and resolved to be just a lay minister.

UGH! The lies spoken into me that day crippled my attitude towards my work for 16 more years. If only there had been a different approach. Maybe I wasn't cut out to be a church pastor, but I could have been encouraged to be a pastor in my workplace.

What if I had been commissioned to see my work as my mission field and my place of ministry?

I could have grasped my daily work as a high calling on MY life and that I should take it very seriously.

The very term "LAY" minister implies that there are two tiers in ministry. Those who get paid to do minister, and then everyone else: the Lay ministers. This word derives negative feelings in me about a two tiered system of importance in the kingdom. IT IS A WORD I WILL NOT USE ANY MORE. What about you? Would you stop using it too? We need to let everyone know that your work in your office/field/parking lot/warehouse/ hospital - all of that is ministry.

You are not a second tier citizen in the Kingdom because you don't get paid by a 4-walls church organization.

Please encourage your pastors to recognize the hurt and harm that this word causes. It also causes a bunch of confusion, which is why I wrote last week's blog that you can read HERE.

So please STOP using the term "Lay Minister" and START recognizing that you are a minister in your work, which is your mission field. You have been assigned there by God and its not by chance.

I'm grateful to now understand that I am a minister in my work and you are too!

Col 3:23 23 -

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters

Jim

About the Author, Jim Brangenberg

Jim's Mission: We are called to be examples of Christ to those around us. With that in mind, Jim is passionate about helping Christ followers connect their faith to their work!