Turning a “Job” into a “Joy”

May 3, 2009

I guess it’s appropriate to say that not everybody likes their job, right? Where you work can be a place of unbelievable stress, of broken dreams, and of strained relationships. A Gallup poll, taken in 2004, found that 71% of US workers consider themselves disengaged “clock watchers” who can’t wait to go home. [Fast Company magazine, 5/04]

So, how do you cope?

Some people use humor as a coping mechanism.

In the aircraft industry, after a flight, pilots will fill out a “gripe sheet,” outlining problems they found with the plane. Maintenance engineers will then deal with the problems and write down the solutions, which pilots will review before taking the plane up again.

Here is a collection of problems and solutions:

P: Left inside main tire almost needs replacement.

S: Almost replaced left inside main tire.

P: Something loose in cockpit.

S: Something tightened in cockpit.

P: Dead bugs on windshield.

S: Live bugs on back-order.

P: Evidence of leak on right main landing gear.

S: Evidence removed.

P: Target radar hums.

S: Reprogrammed target radar with lyrics.

P: Mouse in cockpit.

S: Cat installed.

Makes you want to go out and buy an airline ticket, doesn’t it?

Yes, humor is a way to get you through the work day. Humor helps you tolerate your job. But perhaps there are ways to not just tolerate work, but to gain a sense of satisfaction, perhaps even joy, in it.

Some top leaders were asked why they had stayed at their jobs, when they could have found other jobs with better pay. Their responses offered three compelling reasons.

Some of the leaders said, I am finding meaning and happiness now. The work is exciting and I love what I am doing.

So, one way to turn a job into a joy is to:

LOOK FOR MEANING.

Betty Meadows, a Presbyterian official in Kentucky, once took a summer sabbatical. She wanted to leave her “churchy” world, and go undercover. She worked three months as a Waffle House hostess. She didn’t know what to expect. To her surprise, as she put it, “the risen Christ showed up every day.”

A van broke down in the parking lot, on the Fourth of July, carrying a family from Alabama. No garage or mechanic could be found. A waitress heard of their plight and called her boyfriend. He arrived 15 minutes later and fixed their van, for the price of a cup of coffee.

“The risen Christ in the mechanic and the waitress,” writes Betty.

A lawyer set up shop in the Waffle House, offering legal help to the needy of the community, for what they could pay — or for no payment at all, if they couldn’t afford it.

“Day after day,” writes Betty, “this lawyer sat at a table, smoking his cigar, meeting client after client, turning down no one. The risen Christ in the lawyer.”

She gave other examples of where she saw Christ at work. Maybe this is a good way to find meaning at work. Can you approach each work day with the question, “Where will I see the risen Christ at work today?” The answers may be surprising—and they may give you a sense that what you’re doing at work IS important, even if it may seem tedious and boring at times.

The second thing those top leaders said was this:

I like the people. They are my friends. This feels like a team. It feels like a family. I could make more money working with other people, but I don't want to leave the people here.

So, the second way to turn a job into a joy is this:

LIKE THE PEOPLE

I would think this is a bit more challenging than the first, isn’t it? A job can throw all sorts of different people together, and it may not be a pretty mix. You have differences in ages, in outlooks, in backgrounds. You have people who get into arguments, who hurt each other, who hold grudges. You have bosses who can be overbearing and insensitive, and you have workers who can be selfish and lazy.

And yet, I wonder—is it possible to see your bosses and co-workers as opportunities for you to cultivate that Christian virtue of empathy? Can you take a step back from negative feelings, and can you try to get into their shoes, see things from their perspective? Can you imagine their background, their experiences, that help shape who they are? Can you even take this a step farther, and start looking for the best in the person?

Maybe empathizing with, and not judging, your colleagues is a good way to start making the workplace a little warmer. Who knows? You may actually start liking—or at least better tolerating—some of your associates.

Now, the top leaders agreed that there was one other thing that made their job enjoyable. They said that their job enabled them to pursue their dreams. I don’t know what their dreams would be. Maybe selfish—better promotion track, perhaps. Maybe their jobs enabled them to use their talents better. I don’t know what their dreams are.

But I know what the dream of the Christian is. It’s to:

SHOW COMPASSION.

Quite possibly the workplace is the last place where people can find compassion, especially in this economy. You have benefits reduced, jobs cut, all to improve the bottom line. As stress mounts, people may not act with much love and grace.

And yet, looking for ways to be compassionate in such an environment may very well be one of the most important things you do.

Carol Purves wrote in the Upper Room of a difficult time for her at work. She said that a co-worker had lied about her to her boss. As a result, Carol was passed over for a promotion she’d worked hard for. She grew resentful and bitter, and took out her anger on her colleagues. A Christian took her aside and suggested that Carol forgive the person who had wronged her. “Why should I forgive?” she asked herself. “I was the one who was hurt.” But she recalled that part of the Lord’s Prayer that went, “Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.”

In her words,

Slowly and painfully, I started trying to forgive. It took many months. I never did get a promotion and I worked in a job below my capabilities, but I was finally able to have compassion on the wrongdoer. And I was a better example to my co-workers.

--Upper Room, 4/13/09

Maybe what Carol gained in her job was more important than the promotion. She gained the ability to be compassionate.

Ways to help turn a job into a joy.

According to your job and personality, some of these may be more difficult to do than others. But let me let you in on a secret. As Christians, we have a distinct advantage. We have the ability to turn a job into a joy, REGARDLESS of what that job is.

Do you know why?

Because…ultimately…YOUR JOB ISN’T THAT IMPORTANT TO YOU. Your life doesn’t depend on whether or not you’re successful, or have the job of your dreams. You are meant for something more important—you are meant for Someone more important. ONCE YOU GAVE YOUR LIFE TO CHRIST, YOU JUST SIGNED UP FOR THE MOST IMPORTANT JOB YOU COULD EVER HAVE—TO FOLLOW HIM, TO SERVE HIM, TO DO WHAT HE WANTS YOU TO DO. THAT IS YOUR JOB! Everything else, as St. Paul once said, is “rubbish.”

What separates a Christian from a non-Christian in the workplace is that a Christian sees her/his life not as a series of tasks, but as a mission. As one person reflected,

Whenever we let our work become an end in itself, we lose sight of the love that gives it a deeper purpose, and gradually it becomes a mindless, mechanical chore. With love, the most mundane task can take on meaning. Without it, the noblest task can become drudgery.

--Johann Christoph Arnold, "Seeking Peace"

Ultimately, what we need as Christians is a special “policy and procedures” manual to help carry out our mission.

Paul gives us one this morning.

The Christian’s “policy and procedures” manual:

Romans 12:9-21

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; 10 love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord.   12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. 18 If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." 20 No, "if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads." 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

NRSV

Keep this manual close at hand at work—refer to it often—and you WILL turn your job into a joy.

Following Christ into the workplace isn’t easy.

Christ knows, for we were his workplace. We were his colleagues. And to remind us how we are to relate to one another, on the night in which he was betrayed…