Where is God in My Work? - Reflections on Tim Keller's Novel "Every Good Endeavor"

To Phrase a Question

As we approached the L'Abri house on the outskirts of Boston, Massachusetts, I was increasingly meditating on what question I should choose as the motivation for my study time during our visit.  L'Abri (meaning shelter) serves many purposes for the "students" who come to visit, but primarily it is a place to ask questions or voice doubts about Christianity, and provide resources to help in the search for answers.  But as I bounced ideas and questions around in my mind I kept being drawn back to the inevitable decision I would have to make at the end of our trip.  Was I going to pursue a new career direction focused around stock trading or would I return to the engineering world?  Obviously I have been struggling with this decision for some time, however one aspect which deserved further contemplation was the issue of spirituality.  So regardless of what other noble pursuits I could dream up or world changing problems I could face or tackle or whatever other means someone might conquer through purely intellectual pursuits, this was this question which directed my study.  Where is God in my work and how can I best integrate work and faith?

More than a Sunday School Answer

One of the resources which was recommend to me during the initial meeting with my tutor was a book written by Timothy Keller titled "Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God's Work".  As I sorted through my pile of resources, I must admit that this one intrigued me the least, simply based on the cover design and lack of a flashy title.  I had also never read anything by Timothy Keller, so that wasn't going to sway me one way or the other.  But I was fortunate that I was in a reading mood, so I picked up the book and within the first few pages of the introduction I was hooked.  Not because the book seemed to point to a concrete solution, but that it acknowledge the complexity of the question.  It was this list which initially caught my attention:

The way to serve God at work is to . . .

• further social justice in the world
• be personally honest and evangelize your colleagues
• do skillful, excellent work
• is to create beauty
• work from a Christian motivation to glorify God, seeking to engage and influence culture to that end
• work with a grateful, joyful, gospel-changed heart through all the ups and downs
• do whatever gives you the greatest joy and passion
• make as much money as you can, so that you can be as generous as you can

I had heard all these answers before from friends, family, co-workers, sermons, books and even out of my own mouth, but none of them was ever fully satisfying.  To me this was a list of Sunday school answers that, while theologically sound, quickly withered when tested in real life.  I believe God's creativity allows for a rich and diversified embracement of work itself, and people should be able to pursue their own passions and creativity rather than trying to fill another checkbox on an "are you good christian?" survey.  In Keller's view, the statements on this list are difficult to reconcile because although "there is at least a measure of biblical warrant for every one of them . . . they operate in different ways depending on the field or type of work."(22)  Furthermore, if you simply combine them all equally into a model for Christian work you find that many of them are competing or even contradictory.  Therefore, it is important that we have a solid understanding of God's purpose for work and why it can be so frustrating, destructive, and meaningless sometimes.  Then we can integrate the truths listed above to create an appropriate model, recognizing that each of them should be applied differently and with varying "levels of importance depending on [our] particular vocation, culture, and historical moment." (24)

Leaf by Niggle

"Leaf by Niggle" is a short story written by J.R.R. Tolkien and serves as a central metaphor of the relationship between God, humanity and work throughout the book.  If you have not read this story I strongly suggest you stop here and read it before continuing.  It is a easy read that helps to draw out profound questions about the role of work in our lives.

Click the link to read the story "Leaf by Niggle"

While there are many potential talking points within this story, Keller keys in on Niggles "real picture" as his primary focus.  Niggles ambition is to complete one final, massive painting depicting a great tree in the midst of a grand countryside.  This was to be his ultimate work and he dedicated all available time to completing it.  Niggle worked meticulously, ensuring every leaf was just right, but his vision always outstripped what he was able to achieve.  There were countless distractions, namely his neighbour and various social obligations, but even when left to himself he found it difficult to make much progress.  By the time Niggle died, there was very little that was discernible on the canvas, only a single leaf was saved and hung in the Town Museum.  This leaf was only a tiny glimpse into the vision Niggle had for his grand countryside.  It seemed as though his life's work had amounted to very little.  However, when Niggle finally reaches the outskirts of heaven he gazes upon "The Tree".  It is the great tree from his vision right down to the last leaf.  In fact, the entire countryside is exactly as Niggle had imagined it.  While the land is perfect, there is still more work to do before it is finished.  Niggle embraces this work with tremendous focus and enthusiasm, there is no longer any interruptions or frustrations just the fulfillment of his vision.

I think this story is an appropriate illustration of what work is like on earth and what it was meant to be.  "Everyone imagines accomplishing things, and everyone finds him or herself largely incapable of producing them." (29)  We have a vision of something grand, but all we can create on earth is but a glimpse of that vision.  But why?  Before we can answer that we need to understand the purpose of work in the first place.

God's Plan for Work

Work is something that we were created to do from the very beginning.  God worked to create the universe and is actively working in its maintenance.  God created us to be like him, which is why he called Adam and Eve to "fill the earth and subdue it" while they were still living in the garden.  The world needs to be shaped, "its potential is undeveloped, so it needs to be cultivated like a garden" not keep it exactly as it is, or completely destroy it but we are to "rearrange it in order to make it most fruitful, to draw the potentialities for growth and development" (58).  Work is not a curse or something to be avoided, "work - and lots of it - is an indispensable component in a meaningful human life" (42).  Furthermore, work is not divided into work for God and work for humanity.  All work (that is not evil) is part of God's work.  "Whenever we bring order out of chaos, whenever we draw out creative potential, whenever we elaborate and unfold creation beyond where it was when we found it, we are following God's pattern of creative cultural development." (59)

Our Problems with Work

Similar to Niggle, we quickly observe that despite our grandest visions for work, it rarely lives up to that in reality.  The introduction of sin to the world resulted in "disintegration of every area of life: spiritual, physical, social, cultural, psychological, temporal, eternal." (85)  As such, work can be fruitless or pointless, and lead to selfishness or even idolatry.  Often times we can become trapped chasing after work which does not even fit our strengths or interests, but promises wealth, status or security.  No wonder we quickly become dissatisfied with our jobs and struggle to find meaning in our lives.  If we have options, we should choose work that we can do well, that benefits others, and that furthers our field of work itself.

The Gospel and Work

In order to find meaning in our lives and in our work it is important to develop a worldview.  To establish a worldview you must ask and answer the following questions:

1. How are things supposed to be in this situation?
2. What is the main problem with things as they are?
3. What is the solution and how can it be realized?

Worldviews are not restricted to individuals, but can be found in all areas of life including churches, government, and corporations. You may come to discover conflicts between your personal worldview and that of your workplace.  In order to find meaning in your work you need to identify how your worldview influences how you do your work.  The book has some suggestions for applying the Christian worldview to different lines of work including business, journalism, higher education, the arts and medicine.  The important concept is that you need to carefully consider the challenges, opportunities and pitfalls for applying the Christian worldview in your work.

Thoughts and Conclusions

Some key insights that struck me in reading through this book are noted below.

No profession is superior to another.  If we are saved by God's grace, than nothing we do brings us closer or further away from Him.  Therefore there cannot be any sacred professions.  Why would a pastor be considered more holy than a janitor?  If both are using the opportunities, talents and abilities God has given them to serve people and cultivate the world around them they are equally pleasing to God.  God needs artists, musicians, business executives, carpenters and factory workers.

All work that contributes to culture is pleasing to God.  It doesn't matter whether the work is done by Christians or not.  "Christians who understand biblical doctrine ought to be the ones who appreciate the work of non-Christians the most.  We know we are saved by grace alone, and therefore we are not better fathers or mothers better artists and businesspersons, than those who do not believe as we do.  Our gospel-trained can see the world ablaze with the glory of God's work through the people he has created and called - in everything from the simplest actions, such as milking a cow to, to the most brilliant artistic or historic achievements."

Overall I found this book really helpful in understanding God's plan for work and developing a better view of how engineering and stock trading impact the world.   I still need to do some more reflection on my personal worldview to help determine how my work helps people.  But I'm definitely looking forward to getting home and putting some of this stuff into practice.