Introduction
Very early in life we begin to determine what we want to be when we grow up. And as we grow, there is a subtle yet significant transition from “what do I want to be?” to “what am I going to do?” We are defined and valued in America by what we do. Unfortunately, the path to doing something often bypasses the basic questions about being something.
Webster’s dictionary defines work as “bodily or mental effort exerted to do or make something; purposeful activity.” Interestingly, those who hate their jobs by definition aren’t “working” (purposeful activity) because they are doing something they hate. (Maybe we can come up with a new word for people who spend their time doing something they hate: e.g., “Lifebotcher,” “Wasteoholic,” “Insaniac,”—send me suggestions at dan.miller@48Days.com.) The consumer research center for the Conference Board in New York reports that there may have been sharp declines in many areas of job satisfaction in the American workforce since 1995. Their September 2003 study found that only 50.7 percent of respondents overall said they’re satisfied with their current jobs. And that’s a downward change of 13.5 percent from 1995, when 58.6 percent of those asked said they were satisfied. For many people, work has become nothing more than a paycheck. It is an accepted stance to hate our jobs and to belittle the boss and the company—even for those attempting to live out God’s purpose in their lives.
“I LOATHE MY WORK!”
I hear a lot of poignant phrases from people describing their work. “I loathe my work” came from a Christian attorney during a recent coaching session. According to Webster’s dictionary, to loathe is “to feel intense dislike, disgust, or hatred for; abhor, [or] detest” something. Obviously, it’s pretty difficult to put yourself into your work if you loathe it. You could perform as others expect and get a paycheck, but you are not likely to experience meaning, purpose, peace, or fulfillment in work you loathe.
FARM-RAISED
I was raised on a dairy farm in rural Ohio. My father was a farmer and the pastor of the small Mennonite church in our one-caution-light town, which gave me a unique perspective on the world. Fulfilling God’s will meant honoring my father and mother, attending church at least 3 times a week, not swearing like my town buddies, and keeping my word. Going to ball games, swimming pools, proms, dances, and having free time was out. Fancy cars, TVs, current fashions, and other “worldly” possessions were absolutely forbidden. Work was a constant, 7-days-a-week activity. Cows needed to be milked twice a day, 365 days a year. Corn needed to be planted, hay needed to be mowed, and chicken coops needed to be cleaned.
I had no freedom to consider what kind of work I wanted to do or was called to do. Any wishes, desires, dreams, or callings were squeezed around the realities of life—work had to be done just to survive. The luxury of “enjoying” work was not discussed. Wasn’t work only something we do to pass time through this earthly life until we reach our heavenly reward? Doesn’t the Bible tell us that work was the resulting curse to Adam for eating from the tree of life?
“The ground is cursed because of you.
You will eat from it by means of painful labor
all the days of your life.
It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
You will eat bread by the sweat of your brow
until you return to the ground,
since you were taken from it.
For you are dust,
and you will return to dust.” (Gen. 3:17–19)
Now, I understood that “sweat of your brow” part—only physical work mattered. Those people who “worked” in town in banks, offices, and shopping malls had soft jobs. Yet, out in the fields nothing could stop my mind from wandering, imagining a world I had never seen. I wanted to do more, go more, have more, and be more than anything I was seeing.
And as I continued to read Scripture on my own, I began to notice a new perspective on work. If work was a punishment for evil, why does the Bible continuously tell us to enjoy our work? Even Solomon in his most pessimistic moments told us “it is also the gift of God whenever anyone eats, drinks, and enjoys all his efforts” (Eccles. 3:13). In Colossians 3:23 we are told “whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men.” And God even seems to be promising work as a reward in eternity. Surprise! The saved will “build houses and live [in them]; they will plant vineyards” and “will fully enjoy the work of their hands” (Isa. 65:21–22).
Although I was expected to continue in the family farming when I completed high school, my own desire for work that seemed a better fit for me led me to college to broaden my options. The disadvantages of a poor, legalistic upbringing were helpful in forcing me to look beyond familial expectations for a more fulfilling life. I began a path of relentless personal study alongside academic requirements for multiple degrees in psychology and religion. I wanted to see if I could blend a life committed to God with a life of meaningful work.
Along the way I have worked as an adjunctive therapist in a psychiatric hospital, taught psychology at the university level, sold cars, owned a 4,000-member health and fitness center, built an auto accessories business, painted houses, mowed lawns, counseled at a church, ran a cashew vending machine business, and sold books and tapes on the Internet.
Today I do life coaching as my core business and have 7 additional complementary businesses. The foundational principles you will read come from personal experience and many years of studying and counseling with those who, like I, have found their calling.
GETTING STARTED
48 Days to the Work You Love outlines a new process of looking at what you are going to be when you grow up. How has God uniquely gifted you in (1) skills and abilities, (2) personality traits, and (3) values, dreams, and passions? From these areas we can see clear patterns from which to make career and job decisions. These patterns create a compass, providing a sense of continuity in the midst of inevitable job changes and workplace unpredictability. Looking inward is 85 percent of the process of finding proper direction; 15 percent is the application to career choices.
Work is not a curse of God but one of the benefits of walking in His will. Finding the work you love is not a self-serving goal; it is a required component of fulfilling our true calling.
You may be asking, why 48 Days? Well, the Bible is quite clear that God considers 40 days to be a spiritually significant time period. In fact, in the Bible, anytime God wanted to prepare people for something better, He took 40 days.
• Noah’s life and the world were transformed by 40 days of rain.
• Moses was a different man after spending 40 days on Mount Sinai.
• The Israelite spies scouted the Promised Land for 40 days.
• Elijah ran more than 200 miles in 40 days on 1 meal to get to a place where he could hear from God again.
• Goliath spent 40 days challenging the Israelite army while God prepared David to confront him.
• The people of Nineveh were transformed in 40 days after God’s challenge to change their ways.
• Jesus was empowered for ministry by spending 40 days in the desert.
• The disciples were transformed by spending 40 days with Jesus after the Resurrection.
• There are 40 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter (not counting Sundays).
I’m giving you 8 free days in the process to create your own plan. Take a break on Sundays and a couple of Saturdays. Don’t knock yourself out; just stay committed to this time frame to avoid the usual procrastination.
The next 48 days can transform your life. Take them to look at how you are uniquely gifted, identify your strongest characteristics, consider the options, choose the best path for meaningful and fulfilling work, create a plan of action, and act.
Believing that God created me for His purposes and scheduled every day of my life, I commit the next 48 days to a new clarity and a plan of action for moving into God’s calling for me.
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