The Integration, not Balance, of Whistling and Working

Hello whistling workers!

In my sermon, I mentioned three areas that often “get in the way” of our spiritual growth. These areas take up time that we would otherwise use for worship, fellowship, devotion and mission. I often hear people say, “I won’t be able to come/volunteer/meet/gather, because of,” and it’s either work or kids or entertainment that concludes the sentence. (Most people don’t mention if it’s entertainment because they know that’s a bit silly, but it is still one of the big three – shows and sports!)

What I didn’t have time to do in my sermon was go over some principles of analysis and action if you have something depleting your time for spiritual growth. I want you to know, you can change! You can either change what you do or you can change how you do it.

First of all, how do you determine if something is getting in the way of spiritual growth? Let’s just take work as an example, and these principles are somewhat transferable to other areas that take a lot of time and focus in our lives.

First, ask yourself questions to determine if your job is getting in the way of spiritual growth. In my sermon, I mentioned 4 key activities that we should absolutely take time to cultivate in order to make the whole of our time most meaningful. These 4 are Sunday worship, fellowship with believers, personal spiritual disciplines, and time to cultivate character in everyday ways of serving God. A key question is: Does my work schedule cut into my time to pursue any of these things? Are you missing Sunday worship? Are you missing time you could spend cultivating the godly friendships you need? Are you missing out on personal Bible and prayer time? Are you unable to focus on the opportunities for character growth? Are you unable to give yourself to marriage and family the way you should?

Another key question: Am I not able to make the most of the time because I’m stressed or consumed with the unfinished needs of work? Are you able to relax? Is the fruit of the Spirit being choked out because of the mood your work keeps you in?

If work is not getting in the way, wonderful! You’re blessed! If it is, something needs to change. Being a human being means being a worker for God’s kingdom, and our work needs to be a key pathway, not a roadblock, for God’s mission to and through us. If it’s a roadblock, something needs to change, either what we’re doing or how we’re doing it.

Maybe what we’re doing needs to change. Key question for that: What am I working to achieve? Is it a certain lifestyle, or is it really bare-bones just to live, or is it to get the promotion to have more of an influence at the top for Christ, or is it to make enough money to be able to give 90% of it away to missions? There’s a big difference depending on what your answer is. So whatever it is that you’re working for, think, is that my call in life? What am I giving up in order to get that? Am I giving up peace, am I giving up time for worship and fellowship and family and service? Maybe you’re to look for a job with less pay so that you can have the wages of eternal life. Maybe you should find something less stressful. Maybe you need to find ways to be more efficient with your time so that you can get home sooner. Maybe you can move into a smaller house so that you or your spouse can be at home with the kids. Are you willing to make a choice like that if it seems that that will help you get the more essential areas of life right? If you are working hard just to get by and live, I know that’s difficult. If it’s getting in the way of your spiritual growth, however, consider what choices you do have? Can you get a job that pays you more for less time? That may be more possible than you think. Even if it’s not, where’s your faith? Nothing is impossible with God! Ask and you shall receive! Mountains can move! Even if not right this moment, but what can you do right now so that, 2-3 years down the line, you can have more time for worship and small group and family and that good stuff?

Or maybe you can change how you’re doing it. Are you able to see your current job as a pathway instead of a roadblock? Are you able to discern that God may have placed you exactly where you are in order to use you as a light to the people you are getting to know because you are where you are? Maybe you’re making more money than you need, and it’s a bit stressful, but that God has a call on you to make as much as you can, live on as little as you can, and give away as much as you can to finance kingdom ventures. Maybe he wants to promote you to be an influence in your company, like Daniel and Joseph were promoted for a larger purpose. Maybe you need to be there, working hard (but efficiently), and can make sure you put whatever influence you can to make sure you have time for worship and other essentials. Maybe you become creative for how you pursue avenues for spiritual growth. Start a prayer group at the office!

Whatever you can do to integrate your worshipful whistling and your worshipful work into one body and mind, do it! There are others in the church who do it successfully. Whistle while you network. Wrestle with this, but win! This is what you were made to do!

Pastor Bo

think about such things

With my recent focus on my seminary work, I haven’t been in the pulpit for a while on a Sunday morning, so it was good to preach again.  Inevitably when I write a sermon, I write more than I ever use.   When it comes to writing, sermons or otherwise, Stacey often reminds us of a quote by Ernest Hemingway; “sometimes you have to sacrifice your darlings”, referring to illustrations and thoughts that are good but don’t make the final product.  

You may or may not have noticed that in my sermon on Ephesians 5:7-14, I didn’t expound too much on verse 12.  This isn’t because I consider this verse less important than the others but rather I needed to go in a different direction so this darling had to be sacrificed, so to speak. 

Verses 11-12 state Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.¹² It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.

Several years ago I used to commute to Indianapolis for work several times a week.  Like many Hoosiers, at times I would to listen to a popular morning radio show.   You know the one…no need to mention it by name.  The foolish talk and course joking mentioned in Ephesians 5:4 is a fitting description of some of the skits and antics in the show.  I would listen and smile until something so overt was said, I would feel convicted and change the station.  Finally, I decided that starting my day this way was not something pleasing to my Heavenly Father (Eph. 5:10) so I stopped altogether.  

Some things are so vile that they should be discussed in as little detail as possible, because even describing them is morally and spiritually dangerous.  We are not to make the latest form of perversion and idolatry committed by a celebrity or politician a topic of conversation. We are not to waste our breath discussing the latest new sin to come down the pike; this would include listening to others discuss these things on TV or radio. 

Philippians 4:8 states: Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. So in other words, if it is not good, honest, honorable, admirable, or true don’t waste your time talking about it (or listening to it). 

Live Dangerously! 

two minutes on sin

In my study notes for last Sunday's sermon on Ephesians 5.1-6, I wrote a note to myself.  It read, "2 minutes on sin."  What I meant by that was that in the sermon I planned to spend only about two minutes talking about the sins Paul was railing against in the passage and the rest on God's love.  In the end, I spent more than two minutes on sexual immorality, impurity, greed, obscenity, foolish talk and coarse joking.  My intent, however, was to put the emphasis on the right syllable.

Sometimes people will say to me that they wish I would have really "hammered" this or that sin in a passage, or that I would preach against sin more from the pulpit.  My experience (and my own reality in listening to others preach, if I'm honest) is that we do want preachers to preach on sin, just not the sins we happen to struggle with.  We like preaching to make us feel good about ourselves or to lift us up.  We don't usually enjoy leaving the sanctuary on a Sunday morning feeling in the dumps or that we don't measure up because "our sin" was the main topic for the morning!

My phrase, "2 minutes on sin," reminds me of the Apostle Paul's words in Romans 2, where he tells us that it is God's kindness that is meant to lead us to repentance (v.4).  The kindness of God is the reality that he has a whole new way of life for us, if we will just surrender to him.  That's why I ended the sermon on Sunday with the opening verses, taking the passage in reverse.  With all the hard words Paul has to say to us about sin in Ephesians 5.3-14, we need to be reminded that he begins that chapter telling us, "Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."


Does sin matter?  Of course it does!  Sin builds a wall between us and God and does untold damage to us and others along the way.  But God deals with our sin in the context of his great love for us, and that is a far better motivator for change in our lives than "hammering sin."  We are loved and God has paid the ultimate price so that we might experience that love and the fullest of lives in relationship with him.  It is his kindness that leads us to repentance.  May we all live into and out of God's goodness, kindness, mercy and love, more and more.  Amen.

when church is holy

On the outer edges of the city limits of Cleveland, Ohio there was once an old Episcopal Church.  Kim and I used to pass by their building from time to time on our way into the city for different events.  One day we noticed it was for sale and then suddenly, within a few months, it had been sold and construction crews had moved in and begun to renovate the property.  Only, the building had not been sold to another church.  It was being converted into condominiums!

Architects and crews had gone in and re-designed the building as living spaces.  The first (and likely most expensive) space to go was the unit built into the nave, over the altar, where the Lord's Supper had been served for decades, if not longer.  Why the altar?  Probably because that was understood as a "holier" place, and thus more valuable.  If memory serves me, those condo's went fast - all of them.

What strikes me as strange, however, is the emphasis on parts of the church building as "holy."  What made that building holy had nothing to do with bricks, mortar or sanctified parts of the sanctuary.  What made it holy was the real church - the people who had worshipped and served there over the years.  People are the church.  People are where God resides.  Not in temples made of stone.

It is this value on the "Body of Christ" - the followers who make up God's Temple - that should fuel our godly behavior toward one another.  When we sin (and we will), when we fall short (and we will), when we disappoint one another (and we will), we seek to restore things and to forgive one another because we have been made in God's image and purchased with the blood of Christ.  We seek to preserve the unity in the community of faith because, together, we embody Christ on earth.

What might our days or weeks look like if we viewed others in our households or our congregation as holy - truly holy?  How would it change the way we treat one another?  How much more quickly might we deal with our bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, slander, malice and unwholesome talk?  How much more quickly might we be motivated to extend grace to one another and offer forgiveness?

May the holiness of God's people, the very Body of Christ, fuel your compassion, kindness and forgiveness this week.  Amen.