Reviews
Deploying the power of your job Kingdom Calling: Voca‑ tional Stewardship for the Common Good. By Amy L. Sherman (IVP, 2011, 271 pp. $16 U.S.)
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ost working Christians have more power than they know what to do with, says Amy Sherman. It’s the hidden power of their daily job — often underutilized as a means to advance God’s kingdom. Sadly, she says in Kingdom Calling, most Christians don’t get much help from their church in deploying this power, so they lapse into an anemic vision of how they fit into the divine purpose. Sherman is well-versed in faith/work issues. A PhD graduate in economic development, she is a senior fellow at the Sagamore Institute where she directs the Center on Faith in Communities. She’s also a senior fellow with International Justice Mission, a human rights organization that rescues victims of violence, sexual exploitation and slavery. Twenty years ago she wrote an insightful book titled Prefer‑ ential Option: A Christian and Neoliberal Strategy for Latin America’s Poor (Eerdmans). Here, she focuses on that great block of Christians who have sometimes been called the “frozen assets” of the church. Her intended audience is pastors and ministry leaders, who she contends are missing a great opportunity to equip parishioners for creative ministries of their own. By “ministry” she does not mean only “church work.” She means the 9-to-5, Mondayto-Friday realm which most of us inhabit, and which consumes the bulk of our energy and thought. That realm, she argues, must be deployed for
Christian mission, and not just as a Trojan Horse from which to witness verbally to co-workers. If Christians want to participate in God’s plans for the world, they have plenty of opportunity to do so through daily work, she says. That’s where they can offer the world a “foretaste of the kingdom,” kind of like the little plastic spoon Baskin-Robbins provides to
“All Christians should consider what degree of in‑ fluence they possess in their work setting — and how it can be used creatively for good.” major — avenue believers have for learning to live as foretastes.” Leaders can help parishioners strategically deploy their vocational power in various ways. One, of course, is to “remind their people that they can indeed, through Christ’s power, be different kinds of workers than the nonbelievers around them.” Another is to creatively grasp the ways in which workday skill sets can be put to work for the common good. “All Christians, regardless of their position within an organization, should consider what degree of influence they possess in their work setting — and how that influence can be used creatively for good,” Sherman says. “Sometimes people are so used to simply performing their jobs that they don’t often stop to take stock of the many different skills
taste-test a new flavor. Jesus scooped out a hefty serving of this kingdom with his missional priorities — defined by Sherman as evangelism, compassion and justice. His followers, she says, can do the same. “Believers advance foretastes of the kingdom when they devote themselves to the great work of relief and development; to hunger alleviation; to microenterprise; to sustainable agriculture; to efforts to find new ways to provide everyone with adequate shelter and clean water; and to advocacy for the rule of law so that just, free enterprise can flourish.” But, she adds, they could use a lot more help from their congregations. “If church leaders don’t help parishioners discern how to live missionally through that work, they miss a major — in some instances the 19
they are using in the process.” She suggests four “pathways” of vocational stewardship: 1. Bloom‑ ing where you are planted. “The first place believers should look to conduct their foretastebringing mission is right at the current job they hold.” In numerous ways they can advance biblical “shalom” (wellbeing) in their job, perhaps as an “intrapreneur” who innovates needed reform within a firm or industry sector. 2. Donating your skill-set to charitable ministries. “In most congregations, there is little or no effort to mobilize members for service according to their vocational talents.” 3. Inventing new social enterprises that advance the kingdom in a fresh way. 4. Investing in targeted church initiatives that serve needy segments and “create on-ramps for service by members of all different professional skill sets.” Whichever path is chosen, says Sherman, “congregants need to understand that wherever they are, regardless of their status, they can probably do at least one thing that advances kingdom values like justice or beauty or compassion or economic opportunity or creation care.” — Wally Kroeker The Marketplace May June 2012
