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An unspoken belief exists in many churches
today that 'All Christians are born equal, but 'full time'
Christians [i.e. those in Christian work] are more equal than
others', according to Mark Greene, author of Thank God It's
Monday . Of course God calls all of us to work in some form,
but many assume that working for his body must be the highest
of vocations. Putting those in secular jobs at the bottom
of a ridiculous mental hierarchy, we exalt the Christian worker
to the top without really thinking about why that bias exists.
Those of us who know anyone working in Christian circles,
if we've listened to them lately, will know - as Greene's
book expounds- what a fallacy this is: those in Christian
work are under the same stresses, struggle with the same crises
of identity and nurse just as many (or more) money worries
as the rest of us. But do they feel as free to say so? Do
we even give them the chance, or do we blindly assume that,
as God is their boss, they must be the happiest and most sublimely
contented of all employees?
Kath Arnold works with students in a North London church.
She loves the way her job pays her to do the one thing she's
really passionate about - sharing God with people. The sheer
variety that her working week brings is also a privilege that
she realises, having worked elsewhere, not everyone enjoys.
But as far as money goes, she points out that so many Christian
workers would be free to do a better job if they didn't have
to manage with the minimum. With student work in particular,
a lot of your job description is concerned with building relationships,
spending time with students in the places where they hang
out, meeting them one - on - one. Sometimes treating them,
taking them out of the stressed deadline environment and simply
showing them some care, is your chance to bring Jesus to them.
This often costs money. 'A higher wage would mean that Christian
workers could take people out for coffee more freely, it would
let them be as generous as they are longing to be - and as
their job encourages them to be', Kath says. 'I feel as if
I have to depend on people for money'. She laughs when I ask
if poverty makes you more holy. 'No, it doesn't', she says,
'but you do learn a lot'.
It does seem a curious irony that the most important work
in the world - the work of spreading the gospel - is, in its
professional capacity at least, poorly paid. Many earnest
members of congregations are sending hundreds of pounds off
to foreign aid agencies each month, unaware that the youth
or children's worker in their midst is struggling to pay rent.
Of course the aid agencies need that money too, and we must
send it, but let's make sure that those who are nurturing
our spiritual growth and the growth of our children (work
we'd consider highly important if asked) aren't themselves
crying out for help, before we look further afield. Are we
patting these people on the back, saying 'Go, I wish you well;
keep warm and well fed' but doing nothing about their physical
needs? As Jesus' brother James asks 'what good is that?'
Other equally important issues are at stake here - time off,
for one. Without realising it, churches often make tremendous
demands on the time of their workers - calling them at all
hours, sidling up to them with criticisms and ideas during
the Sunday service, suggesting extra activities on what is
meant to be the worker's day off. This, coupled with the fact
that Christian workers are often extremely bad at saying 'no'
(how can you say 'no' to the Lord?!) can have disastrous consequences.
Lorne Campbell has been in Christian work, on and off, for
six years. He knows of people who, due to the loose boundaries
and flexible structures often in place within churches and
Christian organisations, have reached burn - out because they
found it hard to say 'this isn't working'. Lorne is fortunate
in that his personality stands him in good stead for unstructured
work. He's disciplined and tenacious - he'll present ideas
to a boss regarding his own development, and he'll bounce
back if those ideas aren't furthered or taken on.
Growing up in Boys Brigade, good role models taught Lorne
that 'leadership is by example', and the first seeds of Christian
work were planted in him. Leaving school, he worked with the
Civil Service for several years, doing youth work in his own
time. His colleagues weren't surprised when he left to join
Christian Youth Outreach - an organisation that takes the
gospel into Essex schools, because he spent every lunch-time
preparing Bible studies and worksheets anyway. Lorne worked
with CYO for three years, then moved into the leisure industry
for a while, and now combines his two passions, working with
youth (for CYO and with his church) and running his own catering
business. Whilst admitting to sometimes missing the camaraderie
and interaction that can exist in open-plan offices, Lorne's
very motivated and likes being his own boss. He tends not
to like focussing on Christian worker's pay, but does admit
that 'If you find yourself worrying about money, you're probably
going to struggle with being a Christian worker'. His experience
has shown him that 'one of the frustrations for small evangelistic
organisations is that the gospel is available to be preached
in schools, yet they always have to worry about paying people'.
Christian bosses should be aware that they may need to enforce
time off more than they have been. It's actually poor management
to let people get to burn - out stage. Secular managers would
pick up on the fact that their employees had became ill through
spending too much time at the computer screen and never taking
a lunch break (they could even have a Health and Safety lawsuit
on their hands) - yet who's monitoring the Christian worker
doing the exact same thing at home? Don't depend on the employee
to know when to stop: especially if they feel their whole
relationship with you is task-driven, and they're seeking
the commendation that comes from pleasing you in that.
As for the money, we may not be able to generate a whole lot
more of it, but let's make sure we're directing as much as
possible to the most precious resources we have - real people
doing the work and sacrificing their time and energy to keep
things going. Don't only pay them the least you can get away
with- give them as much as you can, 'for the worker deserves
his wages' .
Anna Brett is a freelance journalist who lives
in Essex. She counts Lois Lane among her earliest influences.
You can contact her on: anzie99@hotmail.com
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