Simply put, it is abnormal for a Christian to not have peace & contentment in their job, even if they hate it. You can change that, and this is how you do it.
It is disheartening to hear a Christian lament about how they hate their job. I’m not finger wagging – quite the contrary, I’ve been there. Keep in mind, I’m not talking about arbitrary stuff that happens that gets you mad – everyone goes through those – I’m talking about being perpetually unhappy at your place of work. The Bible says that we are to have peace, joy and contentment in everything we do. We read that the first disciples found joy in hard times, and we might think, “well, that was them, but it’s different with me.” Simply put, you hate your job, and you think that leaving your current place of employment for another gig will change everything, but that isn’t the case.
You have to change from within, and you’ve been given the tools to do it, but, most likely, weren’t shown how to access them.
Well, that’s going to change, and change right now!
Understanding who you are as a Christian
In essence, if you took Jesus’ offer of grace (Romans 10:10), you are a new creation.
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” ~2 Corinthians 5:17 KJV
Basically, and I know this might raise a few eyebrows, you are a new species because of Jesus. You have been remade and have the Christ character inside of you at this very moment. All the things He was while Jesus walked this Earth, are now a part of your being. To be sure, we wrestle with our old self (read all of Romans 8), but we have been given the authority to gain victory over our flesh, as after we are reborn, we are set on the path of the Spirit, and that path has certain qualities.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” ~Galatians 5:22-25 KJV
Along with the first quality (love/charity) in the above passage, this character has sub-characters and actions found within it.
“Charity (love) suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.” ~1 Corinthians 13:4-7 KJV
Not only are we given the characters of Christ upon our heartfelt confession, but we also have the “conduit of power” within us, for those that have been baptized by the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1-6).
You are a new creation, and these are the tools that you have at your disposal. If you believe in the Bible — that every word of it is truth — then you must concede that your perpetual unhappiness at your job indicates that something is off. Understanding this is the first step. Now, lets discuss how to change that & find peace, joy, and contentment in your work.
Retrain your brain
Depending on when you were saved, you may be running around with old thought patterns. Those that came to Christ when they were very young, have a much easier time of it (Ecclesiastes 12:1) For people, such as myself, that came to Jesus later on, we’ve got a lot of “thought baggage” going on, and we have to get that under control. We need to subdue the crap thinking (2 Corinthians 10:5) and change it so that it aligns with God’s way of thinking.
In other words, you’re going to have to self monitor what is going on for a time until Christ-like thinking is automatic.
But how do I know what thoughts are there? They just pop up and there are a lot of them throughout the day.
Well, that’s what feelings are for. Feelings are an indicator of the thoughts running around in your head. If you’re always in a foul mood at work, hating your job, chances are, you’re running around with bad self-talk, creating scenarios in your head that’s ticking you off, and not taking your own mindset under control.
Self-monitoring is key, and will help you. It will take time, but remember, you have the tools, and you have the technique on changing your outlook. Remember, your crappy attitude came about by dwelling on the bad, now, use that same technique and dwell on the Word of God.
Example:
“Man, this job F!@#ING sucks, and I’m unhappy here!“
STOP – RESET WITH THE WORD OF GOD:
No, I’m content here, because God said that I’m a new creation and a new creation can endure, have peace and contentment.
Over and over again, you’ll do this, just like you did with the bad thoughts, until you no longer need to do this, but are walking in faith in the new species that God has made you through Jesus Christ.
Ok, but how do I “understand” this & have faith?
Simply put, you have to convince yourself that you’re a new creation and that you have the tools to have an abundant life. This passage goes over a type of “countdown” of faith, and faith building:
“Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all, (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were. Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be. And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb: He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;” ~Romans 4:16-24 KJV
In a nutshell:
- Abraham was given a promise (…I have made thee a father of many nations,..)
- Abraham believed in that promise – in hope (…Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations…)
- Abraham didn’t look at his circumstances (…he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb…)
- Abraham realized (…He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God…)
- Abraham acted on the promise – in faith – and “walked in it (… And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform…)
Using Abraham as our template, we can apply this technique to our lives. Now, to be sure, our enemy will come up against us when we start to do this. If the demons around us see that we are not doing what they planned, they will make our day a lot worse (trust me, I know about this). So, what do we do? Do we pray to God for strength & peace? Nope! That prayer has already been answered (read the 2 Corinthians 5:17, Galatians 5:22-25, 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 again, if you doubt)! Why ask for stuff that you’ve already been given. It would be like you asking a person for $20, they had it to you, then asking them again for $20 – it doesn’t make sense. REALIZE that you have been given power, then take back control!
The takeaway
Like Abraham, you must convince yourself that the promise of an abundant life is yours in the here-and-now, as well as the here after (Mark 10:28-30). We must take captive the crappy thinking about how you hate your job, and mold it to things like, “I’m content here,” “I have peace at my place of work,” “I’m happy here,” or something along those lines. You have been given a new life, and you are a new species (creation) because of the obedience and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Don’t squander your time here on Earth on meaningless thoughts that seek to steal, kill, and destroy your life, but focus them on the one who said, “for I have come so that you may have life, and have it to the full (John 10:10).”
