WEBVTT 00:00:04.719 --> 00:00:07.040 Welcome to the MetaCurch Podcast. 00:00:07.200 --> 00:00:08.160 My name's Clayton. 00:00:08.320 --> 00:00:10.240 I'm the pastor here at MetaCurch. 00:00:10.480 --> 00:00:18.079 And my hope is that today's podcast finds you at the perfect time in your life that God uses it to inspire and enlighten you. 00:00:18.239 --> 00:00:20.640 I hope that you enjoy today's message. 00:00:26.719 --> 00:00:27.359 Yeah. 00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:30.160 Hey, give it up for the band one more time. 00:00:30.239 --> 00:00:31.519 Uh they can do it all. 00:00:31.679 --> 00:00:32.000 Yeah. 00:00:35.039 --> 00:00:41.600 I've been paying pretty close attention over the last six months to what's going on out in just the workplace. 00:00:41.840 --> 00:00:46.479 And uh they have been talking about the war over work for quite some time. 00:00:46.719 --> 00:00:49.039 About two months ago, I got into my truck. 00:00:49.119 --> 00:00:53.600 Uh, the last station I was on was Jack FM, which will play great songs like the cranberries, you know. 00:00:53.679 --> 00:00:58.000 And and uh, and so I got in and zombie was on, and I was like, this is it, man. 00:00:58.240 --> 00:01:03.119 At work, we might not be the walking dead, but we are the working dead. 00:01:03.359 --> 00:01:05.200 Like we are zombified. 00:01:05.359 --> 00:01:09.040 We're working without a sense of purpose, without a sense of calling. 00:01:09.200 --> 00:01:12.719 There's these crazy statistics that we're gonna dig into today. 00:01:12.879 --> 00:01:18.000 My message today is the working dead, and before we go any further, would you pray with me? 00:01:18.719 --> 00:01:28.799 God, we love you, and we're gonna be covering just a lot of practical ground today, but we want to cement ourselves in not what we believe about work, but what you believe about work. 00:01:28.959 --> 00:01:32.079 We know that you love us, that you created us on purpose. 00:01:32.239 --> 00:01:39.920 It matters that we're here, and you created us with purpose, and that purpose should be reflected in the world and in our work. 00:01:40.239 --> 00:01:47.599 God, we pray for all that is going on around the globe, uh, things that are so far outside of our control, and yet you hold it all and you see it all. 00:01:47.760 --> 00:01:50.239 God, I just pray that you would fill us with generosity. 00:01:50.319 --> 00:01:51.519 Uh, you would fill us with wisdom. 00:01:51.680 --> 00:01:53.760 We love you, and we pray these things in Jesus' name. 00:01:53.840 --> 00:01:57.920 And if you're ready to learn how to not be the working dead, say amen. 00:01:58.480 --> 00:01:59.120 Amen. 00:01:59.280 --> 00:02:02.319 Uh, let's do like a quick poll, just show of hands. 00:02:02.400 --> 00:02:04.560 Uh, who's ever had a job that they hated? 00:02:04.719 --> 00:02:05.120 Anybody? 00:02:05.280 --> 00:02:06.640 Anybody ever been miserable in a job? 00:02:06.799 --> 00:02:07.359 Okay, good. 00:02:07.439 --> 00:02:11.280 Uh, who has ever had a boss or supervisor that you could not stand? 00:02:11.360 --> 00:02:12.479 We're not gonna say hate, right? 00:02:12.560 --> 00:02:13.680 Because that's a little bit strong. 00:02:13.759 --> 00:02:16.159 You might say it, you know, but we're not gonna say it right now. 00:02:16.240 --> 00:02:18.000 Um, okay, let's get real. 00:02:18.159 --> 00:02:20.800 Scan the room, make sure your boss didn't come to work today. 00:02:21.039 --> 00:02:25.599 Um, who currently is dissatisfied in their job? 00:02:25.840 --> 00:02:28.000 Yeah, that's some honest people in the room. 00:02:28.240 --> 00:02:30.479 If you're on my staff, I can see you, okay? 00:02:30.560 --> 00:02:33.439 That's really on the nose there. 00:02:33.599 --> 00:02:35.599 Um yeah, it's crazy, man. 00:02:35.680 --> 00:02:37.759 I've I've had some jobs where I felt taken advantage of. 00:02:37.919 --> 00:02:42.800 I had some jobs where the work environment was really toxic, where I couldn't really trust my supervisor. 00:02:42.960 --> 00:02:46.319 I didn't really feel like I was living in the middle of my purpose. 00:02:46.479 --> 00:02:55.520 And being in a job that you hate or being in a season of your work where you are completely miserable is really a special kind of hell. 00:02:55.759 --> 00:03:04.879 I mean, work is where you spend the majority of your waking hours if you're working the kind of hours that most people in full-time positions work. 00:03:05.120 --> 00:03:12.400 You are probably working under somebody, which can be very difficult because it is hard to be a good supervisor. 00:03:12.560 --> 00:03:14.879 Forget a great supervisor or manager. 00:03:15.039 --> 00:03:17.840 It is hard just to be a decent manager. 00:03:18.000 --> 00:03:25.599 It takes a lot of work and a lot of intention, and it's a lot easier to get a management position and do nothing. 00:03:25.759 --> 00:03:32.800 And if you do nothing, you're going to be a bad manager, and the people under you are going to suffer. 00:03:33.039 --> 00:03:34.560 It's hard to work with people. 00:03:34.719 --> 00:03:37.360 You have peers, coworkers, colleagues. 00:03:37.520 --> 00:03:39.680 They have their own agendas, their own ideas. 00:03:39.840 --> 00:03:41.919 Maybe they're lazy or unfocused. 00:03:42.080 --> 00:03:50.159 Maybe they're really political, and so you're a better employee than them, but they keep getting the promotions because they know exactly how to work the system. 00:03:50.479 --> 00:03:53.759 Work can be so, so challenging. 00:03:54.000 --> 00:03:58.879 Pre-pandemic, this was back in 2019, Gallup conducted a global poll. 00:03:58.960 --> 00:04:01.039 This isn't just an American problem. 00:04:01.280 --> 00:04:07.199 And this poll was over one billion full-time working people. 00:04:07.360 --> 00:04:17.519 And what they found out of one billion people is that only 15% found real meaning in their job. 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:21.040 85% were dissatisfied. 00:04:21.199 --> 00:04:24.720 That's 850 million people. 00:04:25.600 --> 00:04:28.720 There were a lot of reasons, the three that really stuck out. 00:04:28.879 --> 00:04:32.079 The most surface level was just what they did for work, you know? 00:04:32.240 --> 00:04:35.120 This is like just their job description and what it all entailed. 00:04:35.199 --> 00:04:46.000 And then the the second most was who they worked with, the people around them, because if you're in a toxic work culture and the people around you are just deflating you every single day, it can be so, so difficult to bear. 00:04:46.160 --> 00:04:50.879 And then, probably not surprisingly, the biggest category was who they worked for. 00:04:51.439 --> 00:05:02.000 And that is why, if you are a supervisor, you have to understand the weight and the level of responsibility that you hold because you are affecting people's lives at a very significant level. 00:05:02.240 --> 00:05:06.720 Of course, the pandemic hit in 2020 and it really shifted our view on so many things. 00:05:06.959 --> 00:05:13.279 We don't even realize it because we're just living in the midst of it, but the pandemic changed a lot of how our society functions. 00:05:13.439 --> 00:05:22.240 And it had this unique effect where it caused people to start questioning their work in a way that we've never seen in modern history. 00:05:22.480 --> 00:05:28.879 Now, sociologists can make a lot of guesses at this, but honestly, we're probably too close to it to have a good read. 00:05:29.040 --> 00:05:43.839 But what we do know is that coming out of it in 2021, going through the next level of waves, we saw people leaving their jobs at levels we've never seen before, and they started calling this the Great Resignation. 00:05:44.560 --> 00:05:51.519 In 2021 alone, there were 68 million people who were separated from their jobs. 00:05:51.759 --> 00:05:52.959 68 million people. 00:05:53.120 --> 00:05:56.560 And of course, a lot of people were getting laid off because of the pandemic. 00:05:56.720 --> 00:06:04.240 But out of that 68 million, over 47 million of those people voluntarily quit. 00:06:05.519 --> 00:06:12.959 Last year in America alone, almost 50 million people chose to leave their jobs. 00:06:13.120 --> 00:06:17.680 If you're wondering, that's about one out of every five adults in America. 00:06:17.920 --> 00:06:29.920 Not only is this so crazy to see that high of a number of voluntary quits, what was crazier is the age ranges that made up the greatest majority of that 47 million. 00:06:30.160 --> 00:06:33.920 It was primarily people 30 to 45 years old. 00:06:34.160 --> 00:06:42.959 What that means is they have been in their career now for 10 to 20 years and they are choosing to walk away from it. 00:06:43.120 --> 00:06:47.040 You see a lot of people quitting in their 20s because they don't have a track record yet. 00:06:47.199 --> 00:06:49.920 You're just bouncing from place to place, finding where you land. 00:06:50.079 --> 00:06:57.600 You see people towards the end, they'll put in their 20, 25 years, quit that job to go take another job and double down on their retirement. 00:06:57.759 --> 00:07:10.399 But to see 35-year-olds who have put 15 years into a company choosing to walk away from it in by the millions is something we've never seen before. 00:07:11.040 --> 00:07:13.439 So it's worth paying attention to. 00:07:14.000 --> 00:07:18.720 And so a lot of people are leaving toxic workplaces and they're trying to go find somewhere else. 00:07:18.879 --> 00:07:24.160 Unfortunately, not everyone was able to go a parallel move from their job they had to another job. 00:07:24.240 --> 00:07:33.279 And what was really concerning, and something that seems to be creeping more and more onto the scene, is these movements that are viewing themselves as anti-work movements. 00:07:33.920 --> 00:07:38.000 Someone leaving a job and joining another one really isn't what we're too concerned with today. 00:07:38.079 --> 00:07:39.759 In fact, that can be a very good thing. 00:07:40.000 --> 00:07:47.279 The concern is that there are millions of people who dropped out of the workforce and are choosing not to re-enter it. 00:07:47.680 --> 00:07:56.959 They're finding out ways to live and to, you know, just have like subsist in this culture, and they don't have any intention of going back. 00:07:57.360 --> 00:08:13.600 There are online communities like the anti-work community that believes that work is actually an evil upon the earth, that you shouldn't work, that human beings were meant to pursue pleasure and leisure, the selfish pursuit of what you and you alone want. 00:08:14.160 --> 00:08:15.920 And so they begin to study this. 00:08:16.079 --> 00:08:21.279 There is a professor named Nicholas Eberstadt, he's a political economist and a professor. 00:08:21.519 --> 00:08:28.240 He studied uh thousands and thousands of people who have dropped out of the workforce and are choosing not to go back. 00:08:28.319 --> 00:08:31.040 And what he found is absolutely devastating. 00:08:31.279 --> 00:08:41.919 He found that they are checked out from the rest of society, that they don't involve themselves in things like worship or charity in their families because they usually have moved back in with family. 00:08:42.159 --> 00:08:45.279 They do not help out around the house, which shouldn't be surprising. 00:08:45.440 --> 00:08:48.320 They don't think that they should contribute to society at large. 00:08:48.480 --> 00:08:51.840 Why should they have to contribute in their families? 00:08:52.399 --> 00:08:58.000 2,000 hours a year is what they are spending in front of screens, if you're wondering. 00:08:58.639 --> 00:09:02.720 That's a full-time job, 40 hours a week for 52 weeks. 00:09:02.960 --> 00:09:12.559 And especially for the men, which comprise most of the people who are dropping out, a great majority of those 2,000 hours are spent viewing pornography. 00:09:13.679 --> 00:09:28.639 Over half of the people that he studied were on prescription pain medication, even though they didn't show any actual symptoms, and the majority of those were abusing that pain medication, trying to numb a sense of emotional pain that they couldn't quite find the source of. 00:09:28.720 --> 00:09:30.639 And so we have a real problem. 00:09:31.759 --> 00:09:36.960 You see, to put it succinctly, work is not working for us. 00:09:37.679 --> 00:09:40.879 Not working is not working for us. 00:09:41.360 --> 00:09:43.519 And so we're in trouble either way. 00:09:43.679 --> 00:09:50.480 People are miserable in their jobs, and so they leave the workforce and become even more miserable without a job. 00:09:50.559 --> 00:09:52.559 And so, what is the answer? 00:09:52.720 --> 00:09:58.159 We're gonna dig in today and we're gonna start by really understanding what God thinks about work. 00:09:58.320 --> 00:10:01.200 Not what we think about work, but what God thinks about work. 00:10:01.360 --> 00:10:14.559 And once we've established that, we are going to get into some very practical pieces of what you should be looking for as we deconstruct the idea of work in your career and see if we can find you some relief. 00:10:14.720 --> 00:10:22.879 And if you don't think this applies to you, let me just tell you, you might be in a great season now, and I hope that it lasts forever, but it probably won't. 00:10:23.120 --> 00:10:30.639 At some point in your life, you may find yourself miserable at work as well, and this is worth paying attention to. 00:10:30.960 --> 00:10:42.879 The people who have this fantasy about never working, this utopian vision of just like, you know, leisure time and hobbies and stuff like that, they seem to be trying to bring back this state of perfection. 00:10:43.200 --> 00:10:52.000 In Christian terms, it's like they're longing for the Garden of Eden in that edenic state where everything is perfect and we can finally just relax. 00:10:52.320 --> 00:11:04.639 And you might be surprised to learn exactly what God thinks about work because even in the church world, many people believe that work is a curse that God gave because of our sin. 00:11:04.799 --> 00:11:15.919 And we think that because in the creation narrative, God created the world and he created the pinnacle of his creation, which was humanity, and he placed humanity in a world of perfection. 00:11:16.080 --> 00:11:24.559 And it wasn't until in their freedom they chose to sin against God that the world was broken and fell into the chaos that we now inhabit. 00:11:24.799 --> 00:11:28.639 And when the world was cursed, God said this in Genesis 3. 00:11:28.799 --> 00:11:35.840 Starting in verse 17, he said to the man, Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, do not eat from it. 00:11:36.000 --> 00:11:44.399 The ground is cursed because of you, and you will eat from it by means of painful labor, all the days of your life. 00:11:44.559 --> 00:11:46.159 We read it and we think, there it is. 00:11:46.399 --> 00:11:47.840 Work is a curse. 00:11:48.080 --> 00:11:59.120 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field, and you will eat bread, here it is, by the sweat of your brow until you return to the ground, since you were taken from it. 00:11:59.200 --> 00:12:02.480 For you are dust, and you will return to dust. 00:12:02.639 --> 00:12:03.519 There it is. 00:12:03.840 --> 00:12:11.120 Work seems to be a punishment for the fall of man, for our rebellion against the most high God. 00:12:11.279 --> 00:12:28.240 And so we think something like, Man, if Adam and Eve would have just not screwed this up for us, you know, we could just all like hang out in hammocks, we could just be frolicking, butt naked, you know, like everything would be perfect if Adam and Eve wouldn't have eaten the stinking fruit. 00:12:28.799 --> 00:12:35.360 And I'm telling you, this idea of trying to get back to paradise by avoiding work will not work. 00:12:36.159 --> 00:12:40.320 And that's because work is not a curse. 00:12:41.519 --> 00:12:48.159 You see, this is God handing out the curses, the natural consequences for going against God's rules. 00:12:48.480 --> 00:12:50.480 Work is not a curse. 00:12:50.639 --> 00:12:58.159 And I know this because the first time God talks about work is not in Genesis 3, it's in Genesis chapter 2. 00:12:58.399 --> 00:13:00.559 In Genesis 1, God creates the world. 00:13:00.639 --> 00:13:06.399 In Genesis 2, he begins to describe how his perfect world will function. 00:13:06.559 --> 00:13:10.799 And in Genesis 2, verse 15, it starts to talk about the role of humanity. 00:13:10.960 --> 00:13:18.159 The first thing it says is the Lord God took the man and placed him in the Garden of Eden to work it. 00:13:19.840 --> 00:13:23.200 Work was instituted before the fall. 00:13:23.360 --> 00:13:34.720 And what we see before the fall in Genesis 1 and 2 is like a sneak peek into God's original design and his original intention for this world and for our role inside of it. 00:13:34.879 --> 00:13:37.600 It means that we were made to work. 00:13:37.759 --> 00:13:49.600 Not only is work not a curse, but it's not neutral because everything in the garden was a blessing, which means, maybe surprisingly, that work is a blessing. 00:13:51.279 --> 00:13:56.399 A life without meaningful work cannot be meaningful. 00:13:56.559 --> 00:14:05.679 A life selfishly pursuing your own leisure and your own desires will only leave you more and more empty across time. 00:14:06.000 --> 00:14:08.240 We were made to work. 00:14:08.799 --> 00:14:19.360 Now, work looks like you know all kinds of different things because it can look like a career where you have a job, you know, and you work your eight to five and you put in 40 or 50 hours a week and you're trying to build towards something. 00:14:19.519 --> 00:14:21.200 But there's a lot of ways to work. 00:14:21.360 --> 00:14:23.840 And many of you have like dreams of retirement. 00:14:24.000 --> 00:14:30.159 But I worry about people when they retire because their idea is they're retiring from work. 00:14:30.879 --> 00:14:37.759 You can retire from your job, but if you retire yourself from work, then the meaningful life that you are pursuing will not come. 00:14:38.639 --> 00:14:47.039 Meaning is found in our work because it was a scriptural mandate for humanity to work while we were still in perfection. 00:14:47.360 --> 00:14:48.960 I have a really cool mother-in-law. 00:14:49.120 --> 00:14:57.919 I'm I just, you know, I feel like overblessed because I hear horror stories about in-laws, you know, and I have a great mom and a great mom-in-law, and she retired after decades as an educator. 00:14:58.000 --> 00:15:09.919 And like I do when anyone retires, I worried about her, but she's finding meaning in her work, and and her full-time work is as a grandma, and she has grandkids all over the state of Texas, you know, and she never misses anything. 00:15:10.080 --> 00:15:11.759 She supports, she lends a hand. 00:15:11.840 --> 00:15:12.320 You need her. 00:15:12.480 --> 00:15:14.639 She is on demand, she shows up at your house. 00:15:14.799 --> 00:15:16.399 There's a lot of ways to work. 00:15:16.559 --> 00:15:21.840 We've got single moms in the room, and we have stay-at-home moms in the room, and that is work. 00:15:22.000 --> 00:15:30.080 I was a stay-at-home dad for three months, and dude, I will work right on the edge of the flames of hell before I'm a stay-at-home dad again. 00:15:31.440 --> 00:15:33.919 There's no way, there's no harder work. 00:15:36.879 --> 00:15:42.879 We were made to work, and yet, working is not working. 00:15:43.600 --> 00:15:46.480 And not working is not working. 00:15:47.120 --> 00:15:52.399 And so, how do we come to an understanding of work that we can actually apply? 00:15:52.639 --> 00:15:54.799 Noel said you might want to take notes, and here's the deal. 00:15:54.960 --> 00:16:01.840 I I can't actually tell you that you get heavenly extra credit for taking notes, but I can't tell you that you don't either, you know? 00:16:02.000 --> 00:16:07.360 And we're gonna cover a lot of ground today because this is going to get super, super practical. 00:16:07.519 --> 00:16:25.840 And whether you are in a job you hate currently or maybe you might be there someday, we've got to deconstruct what work is to understand it and apply it to our life in a way where you can thrive right where you are and you can get on the path to where you are meant to be. 00:16:26.000 --> 00:16:27.759 We're gonna look at three aspects of work. 00:16:27.840 --> 00:16:32.240 We're gonna start uh from like the most superficial layer down to the very core. 00:16:32.399 --> 00:16:44.799 We're gonna look at what work is, we're gonna look at how you behave at work, and we're finally at the very core of it, going to look at why we work. 00:16:45.679 --> 00:16:48.799 When people talk about their job, they often talk about the what. 00:16:49.440 --> 00:16:51.759 What work is, we're gonna start with what. 00:16:52.240 --> 00:16:54.960 What work is is just your job description. 00:16:55.120 --> 00:17:02.000 It's your title in the company, it's how you would describe what you do to bring home the money. 00:17:02.240 --> 00:17:06.720 This is what you do, and oftentimes when someone doesn't like their job, it's what they do. 00:17:06.799 --> 00:17:09.119 And they'll say that I just don't like what I'm doing. 00:17:09.279 --> 00:17:14.880 I don't enjoy it, I don't find meaning in it, I don't find purpose in it, I don't like the actual tactical work. 00:17:14.960 --> 00:17:16.240 And it's very difficult. 00:17:16.400 --> 00:17:26.000 And we've got to parse this out because you might think that you don't like what you're doing, and your actual problem might be found later in the message in the how or the why. 00:17:26.160 --> 00:17:30.799 But maybe, maybe you just really don't like what it is that you are doing. 00:17:30.880 --> 00:17:36.880 And this can be really difficult because you're kind of stuck and you're expected to show up like five days a week at least, right? 00:17:36.960 --> 00:17:41.200 And show up and do that thing that you no longer have any passion about. 00:17:41.359 --> 00:18:02.880 And if your problem is a what problem, you don't like the nature of your work, chances are that your dissatisfaction is rooted at some level in a comparison to your current day job that you do not like, and the comparison to your dream job that you would rather be doing. 00:18:03.279 --> 00:18:21.200 And so you're flipping burgers right now, but you really want to design clothes, or you're a bank teller right now, but you really want to open your own restaurant, or maybe you are a framer right now, but you see the money the welders are making, and you really want to go weld. 00:18:21.359 --> 00:18:28.000 And so there's a dissatisfaction because there's a gap between your day job and your dream job. 00:18:28.160 --> 00:18:38.400 And so every day you wake up knowing you're not doing the what that you actually want to be doing, and that can be incredibly, incredibly painful. 00:18:38.559 --> 00:18:42.480 And so let's get really practical because we were made to work. 00:18:42.640 --> 00:18:47.119 And so, what's holding you back from the what that you desire? 00:18:47.440 --> 00:18:52.400 Now, for some of you, the problem is you don't have a dream job, you have a fantasy job. 00:18:52.559 --> 00:18:59.920 And the first thing you're gonna have to do is you're gonna have to come back to earth and put a plan together that is actually based in reality. 00:19:00.079 --> 00:19:07.920 If you're 36 years old and your fantasy job is to play in the NBA, it's just time to come on back to earth, you know? 00:19:08.799 --> 00:19:16.319 If you're 42 and your dream job is a bikini influencer on Instagram, let's just come on back down to earth. 00:19:17.839 --> 00:19:22.480 And so most people have a realistic dream job. 00:19:22.720 --> 00:19:27.039 There is a world where you could do what you desire. 00:19:27.920 --> 00:19:33.359 And for some of us, we put so much emphasis in our job and we have found our identity in our job. 00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:45.839 We are so filled with fear that we are actually capable of pursuing the dream that we have, and yet we wake up every day stuck in the monotony of the day job we hate. 00:19:47.200 --> 00:19:51.359 And can I just say to you that your life is too important to waste? 00:19:52.079 --> 00:19:54.720 And so we gotta get to the bottom of what is keeping you stuck. 00:19:54.880 --> 00:20:00.880 And man, I swear, some people act, some people act like they are prisoners in their job. 00:20:01.200 --> 00:20:03.759 Some people act like there's no way they could leave. 00:20:04.000 --> 00:20:06.319 Let me tell you something you might not be aware of. 00:20:06.799 --> 00:20:10.240 You can quit your job. 00:20:10.480 --> 00:20:11.599 Did you know that? 00:20:12.400 --> 00:20:14.000 It's the craziest thing. 00:20:14.240 --> 00:20:19.839 But people really live like they are indentured servants to their place of work. 00:20:20.160 --> 00:20:21.200 It's very difficult. 00:20:21.839 --> 00:20:29.759 And so a lot of people, I mean, a lot of people who are really dissatisfied, they're full of anxiety, they're depressed, and and it really is rooted in what they are doing. 00:20:30.000 --> 00:20:33.359 And I ask them, are you applying for what you want to do? 00:20:33.519 --> 00:20:35.440 Have you taken any steps towards it? 00:20:35.680 --> 00:20:39.440 And not eight out of ten, not nine out of ten, I am not kidding. 00:20:39.599 --> 00:20:43.440 Ten out of ten times they have not done a thing. 00:20:44.400 --> 00:20:45.599 So, what's holding us back? 00:20:45.920 --> 00:20:47.839 Well, the most obvious thing is fear. 00:20:48.160 --> 00:20:50.720 We are afraid and we are afraid of the unknown. 00:20:50.880 --> 00:20:54.079 And our fear causes us to find comfort in misery. 00:20:54.240 --> 00:21:02.319 And so you are more comfortable in your misery than you are willing to get uncomfortable to pursue what your life is actually capable of. 00:21:02.640 --> 00:21:14.240 And if you really believe that there is a God who is so powerful that he exists outside of space and time, that he spoke and the universe came into creation, that he created you with a purpose. 00:21:14.400 --> 00:21:20.079 It is time to fight fear and get moving towards what you actually want to do. 00:21:20.319 --> 00:21:22.960 You can say amen to that because that's about you. 00:21:23.200 --> 00:21:31.599 You can clap for that because there is a chance for you to leave the day job you hate and get somewhere approximating the dream job you desire. 00:21:31.759 --> 00:21:37.599 Meta Church, I swear before God in this room, I'm gonna teach y'all how to participate while I am preaching up here. 00:21:37.759 --> 00:21:39.680 Somebody clap your hands. 00:21:45.839 --> 00:21:50.720 I showed up today and the internet was out, so I'm not on the internet right now, so you're just getting all of me, all right? 00:21:52.960 --> 00:21:54.240 What is holding you back? 00:21:54.400 --> 00:21:57.200 There is a job, it's a dream job, but it's a realistic dream job. 00:21:57.359 --> 00:21:59.519 You don't have the skills or the training. 00:22:00.240 --> 00:22:02.960 The accreditation or the degree to get to it? 00:22:03.920 --> 00:22:05.039 So, what's your plan? 00:22:06.799 --> 00:22:08.000 Go get the skills. 00:22:08.720 --> 00:22:09.920 But you know what that's gonna take? 00:22:10.079 --> 00:22:11.839 It's gonna take getting uncomfortable. 00:22:12.400 --> 00:22:13.920 Let's get really real. 00:22:14.400 --> 00:22:16.160 Some of you hate your job. 00:22:16.799 --> 00:22:21.039 You know the job that pays you the money that keeps the roof over your head and the food on your table? 00:22:21.200 --> 00:22:22.160 You hate that job. 00:22:22.400 --> 00:22:24.960 You don't hate the money, but you hate that job. 00:22:25.519 --> 00:22:38.640 And so because you have so much pain in your job, the money that the job gives you might as well be used to alleviate some of the pain that keeps existing because you're not making any moves towards your dream. 00:22:38.799 --> 00:22:44.640 And the truth is, some of you lack the skills, accreditation, or degree to get from your day job to your dream job. 00:22:44.720 --> 00:22:51.119 And you can't pursue the degree or skills or training that you need because you are living so far above your means. 00:22:51.279 --> 00:22:53.599 That means you are spending more money than you make. 00:22:53.759 --> 00:23:04.000 And you have a$600 payment on that truck because you think if I'm gonna drive every day to a job that I don't like, I'm at least gonna drive in a truck that I love. 00:23:07.359 --> 00:23:09.440 And so here's what it takes. 00:23:09.680 --> 00:23:12.559 You wanna get from day job to dream job? 00:23:12.720 --> 00:23:14.799 You wanna change what you are doing? 00:23:15.039 --> 00:23:17.200 It will require sacrifice. 00:23:17.680 --> 00:23:29.039 It will require cutting that$200 cable, taking the 15 hours right now that you currently watch sports and the 20 hours that you scroll through your phone, taking the$600, trading in the whip for the hoopty. 00:23:29.519 --> 00:23:30.720 And you know what? 00:23:30.960 --> 00:23:41.759 When you get on the track to your dream job, you will drive in your in your Ford Fiesta, no, no offense to any Ford Fiesta honors, it's better than my truck, I promise. 00:23:42.079 --> 00:23:54.319 You will drive in in your 04 tundra that I drive to work every day with a smile on your face because you are going to work to now fund your path to your dream. 00:23:54.559 --> 00:23:56.079 It's a powerful change. 00:23:56.160 --> 00:23:57.359 And here's what you can do. 00:23:57.599 --> 00:23:58.559 Here's what you can do. 00:23:58.720 --> 00:24:00.480 Here's the cheat code. 00:24:00.880 --> 00:24:09.680 You can let your day job that you hate fund your dream job that you want. 00:24:10.480 --> 00:24:19.440 And there's different levels to this because depending on the amount of responsibility that you have is gonna really determine how quickly and aggressively you can go after this, okay? 00:24:19.680 --> 00:24:25.279 So, like if you're single, you don't have any bills, you got a roommate, you got all that stuff, man, you can move really quickly towards this. 00:24:25.599 --> 00:24:29.759 If you've got a spouse and four kids, you're gonna have to be methodical. 00:24:30.240 --> 00:24:49.920 But we have to overcome fear and get outside of our comfort zone and start living below our means and get ourselves in an actual plan and an actual path to get the skills, the accreditation, or the degree that you need to make it to the job that God has placed on your heart to go and live out the fullness of your life because your life is worth it. 00:24:50.160 --> 00:24:54.880 Man, it's almost, it's almost time to understand work. 00:24:55.200 --> 00:24:58.559 But we gotta go from the what and we gotta get to the how. 00:24:59.680 --> 00:25:08.720 The how is not about what you do at work, it is about how you behave in your work. 00:25:09.200 --> 00:25:14.160 And so this brings us down to the level where we have to deal with coworkers, peers, and colleagues. 00:25:14.319 --> 00:25:19.440 This brings us to the level where we have to work under uh demeaning supervisors. 00:25:19.599 --> 00:25:23.599 This is how you're going to choose to conduct yourself at work. 00:25:23.759 --> 00:25:26.319 It is the characteristics that you display. 00:25:26.400 --> 00:25:33.359 And when you have a job that you are miserable in, one of the first things to go is healthy habits and strong character. 00:25:33.599 --> 00:25:37.519 It's like, dude, nobody else is doing anything that's worth anything. 00:25:37.680 --> 00:25:40.880 Why would I show up and bring my whole self to work? 00:25:41.039 --> 00:25:46.640 And so we have an incredibly jaded and cynical workforce, and you need to hear this. 00:25:47.680 --> 00:25:56.240 If you do not change the how of work, the what will never matter. 00:25:56.799 --> 00:26:14.000 If you don't change how you behave and who you are at work, then you will go from what to what, from job to job, from industry to industry, and you will never find the contentment that you are searching for because every job you end up at, you are there. 00:26:15.200 --> 00:26:16.240 And so, how do we do this? 00:26:16.319 --> 00:26:17.519 I mean, really, how do we do this? 00:26:17.599 --> 00:26:19.039 Because I'm not gonna pretend this is easy. 00:26:19.200 --> 00:26:25.359 If you're in a toxic work environment, I'm not gonna pretend like you can just show up and just decide that you're gonna be all smiles, right? 00:26:25.519 --> 00:26:28.079 How are you actually going to do this? 00:26:28.319 --> 00:26:31.599 We have a great example in the Old Testament book of Daniel. 00:26:31.759 --> 00:26:44.240 In Daniel chapter one, we read, In the third year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, man, I'm glad that we name people differently these days, you know, came to Jerusalem and laid siege to it. 00:26:44.400 --> 00:26:50.720 And the king ordered that guy, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the Israelites from the royal family. 00:26:50.880 --> 00:27:01.440 In verse 4, young men without any physical defect, good looking, suitable for instruction and all wisdom, knowledgeable, perceptive, and capable of serving in the king's palace, the best of the best. 00:27:01.599 --> 00:27:04.799 And he was to teach them the Chaldean language and literature. 00:27:04.880 --> 00:27:11.599 In verse 5, the king assigned them daily provisions from the royal food and from the wine that he drank. 00:27:11.839 --> 00:27:18.559 The king of Babylon went into the Jewish territory, conquered it, and took back the best and the brightest of the young Jewish men. 00:27:18.720 --> 00:27:25.920 And they now have a work dilemma, because they are going to be fed a diet that goes against Jewish law. 00:27:26.079 --> 00:27:28.559 Now I know your boss is bad, right? 00:27:28.880 --> 00:27:30.960 And man, he doesn't treat you fairly. 00:27:31.039 --> 00:27:39.200 And all and it's like, man, every day you just come home just cussing that guy or cussing that girl and telling your spouse just how big of an idiot your boss is. 00:27:39.359 --> 00:27:42.799 But let me tell you this: you do not have it worse than Daniel. 00:27:43.440 --> 00:27:45.440 This is actual slavery. 00:27:45.680 --> 00:27:53.200 They came in and they killed his family and friends, they took his country captive and they hauled him into a foreign country. 00:27:53.359 --> 00:28:09.359 He has every right now that they are trying to force him to go against his religious beliefs, to throw a fit, to cuss them up and down, to be the exact kind of employee that you want to be, what you want to tell your boss, what you fantasize about doing when you quit. 00:28:09.519 --> 00:28:10.960 He has every right to be that. 00:28:11.119 --> 00:28:17.519 And instead, in verse 8, Daniel determined he would not defile himself with the king's food or with the wine he drank. 00:28:17.680 --> 00:28:23.440 And so he asked permission from the chief eunuch to not defile himself. 00:28:23.680 --> 00:28:25.279 He asked permission. 00:28:25.519 --> 00:28:29.200 Verse 9, God had granted Daniel kindness and compassion from the chief eunuch. 00:28:29.279 --> 00:28:33.599 And yet he said to Daniel, I fear the Lord, the king, who assigned your food and drink. 00:28:33.759 --> 00:28:38.240 What if he sees you looking thinner than the other young men your age, you would endanger my life? 00:28:38.400 --> 00:28:45.119 And so Daniel said to the guard, whom the chief eunuch had assigned to Daniel, please test your servants for ten days. 00:28:45.279 --> 00:28:55.200 Let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink, and then examine our appearances and the appearance of the young men who are eating the king's food and deal with your servants based on what you see. 00:28:55.440 --> 00:28:56.400 What does he do? 00:28:56.720 --> 00:28:58.720 Man, Daniel asks permission. 00:28:58.880 --> 00:29:02.240 He seeks authority from an illegitimate authority figure. 00:29:02.400 --> 00:29:03.519 He empathizes with them. 00:29:03.599 --> 00:29:06.880 The guy's like, Look, if I change up your diet, this guy could kill me. 00:29:07.200 --> 00:29:12.000 Daniel could have said, Do you think I care if you die? 00:29:12.319 --> 00:29:14.559 Y'all just slaughtered my people. 00:29:15.359 --> 00:29:17.440 He comes to a compromise. 00:29:17.839 --> 00:29:23.279 He respects authority that did not require his respect. 00:29:24.000 --> 00:29:26.000 Daniel and the other three men came out on top. 00:29:26.160 --> 00:29:32.880 They ended up with huge positions in Babylon where they were able to show a country the glory of their God. 00:29:33.039 --> 00:29:40.720 And here's what Daniel shows us that your work, how you work, exposes your character. 00:29:41.839 --> 00:29:43.440 And so here's what we think. 00:29:44.640 --> 00:29:50.960 We think when I get the job of my dreams, then I will really start working hard. 00:29:51.200 --> 00:29:53.759 Then I will really respect authority. 00:29:54.160 --> 00:29:56.160 Then I will share all my great ideas. 00:29:56.319 --> 00:29:57.440 Then I will be focused. 00:29:57.599 --> 00:30:04.640 But for now, in this job, this job that I hate, so what do we become? 00:30:04.960 --> 00:30:06.960 We become unfocused, lazy. 00:30:07.119 --> 00:30:14.000 We do the very minimum, just enough so they can't fire us, but not enough where it would actually help the company in any meaningful way. 00:30:14.400 --> 00:30:17.119 We become divisive, we gossip, you know. 00:30:17.279 --> 00:30:20.480 And here's what you need to know if they'll gossip with you, they'll gossip about you. 00:30:20.559 --> 00:30:35.440 I'm sure you know that, but just for reference, and we think when I get the job I really desire, then I will flip a switch and I will turn on the ultimate employee character in life. 00:30:35.920 --> 00:30:37.519 It just does not work that way. 00:30:38.160 --> 00:30:46.799 Your behaviors create habits, and once habits are formed, they are near impossible to get yourself out of. 00:30:47.920 --> 00:30:55.680 When people are struggling with the how, how they behave, toxic workplace, unruly supervisors, terrible colleagues. 00:30:56.000 --> 00:30:59.680 They want to be and they want to go and do something else. 00:30:59.839 --> 00:31:02.240 And I've given the same advice my entire career. 00:31:02.480 --> 00:31:09.759 You have to begin to act now exactly how you will act when the opportunity comes. 00:31:09.920 --> 00:31:12.400 You want that leadership position in the future? 00:31:12.640 --> 00:31:23.440 I need to see you murdering right now the job that has been placed in your hands, even if you can't stand what you're doing, you can't stand the people you're doing it with, you can't stand your supervisor. 00:31:23.599 --> 00:31:29.519 You know, there's this old advice dress for the job you want, not the job that you have. 00:31:29.680 --> 00:31:34.160 And I am apparently really desiring to be in a 90s boy band. 00:31:34.319 --> 00:31:35.119 You know what I'm saying? 00:31:35.200 --> 00:31:38.400 Like, here's better advice. 00:31:39.039 --> 00:31:42.400 Behave now in the job you hate. 00:31:43.119 --> 00:31:48.000 How you hope others behave in the job of your dreams. 00:31:49.680 --> 00:32:08.319 You know when you dream about your job and everyone's respectful and everyone believes the best, and everyone has like healthy conflict, and there's clear lines of accountability, and there's clarity in your expectations, and everyone collaborates and works together, and everyone brings their whole self to work, and and and everyone comes in and actually cares about the mission of the organization. 00:32:08.480 --> 00:32:13.440 You know how everyone behaves towards you when you dream about the job you desire? 00:32:14.480 --> 00:32:20.640 You have to begin behaving now how you hope others will behave at the job you are going to. 00:32:20.880 --> 00:32:39.599 And if you fall in to these weak character flaws now, unfocused and lazy and uncaring and divisive, you will show up to the job of your dreams, and a healthy culture will expunge you because of the habits you created and the job that you hated. 00:32:40.799 --> 00:33:03.759 You got to use the opportunity of the struggle and suffering now, change your lenses, come into a toxic environment and say, if I can thrive here, if I can bring my full self to work here, if I can raise my game here, I will be the kind of person who, when I interview for the job I'm supposed to be in, they will move heaven and earth to bring me onto their team. 00:33:04.079 --> 00:33:05.119 Behave now. 00:33:05.680 --> 00:33:10.640 How you hope the entire culture of your dream job will behave later. 00:33:11.440 --> 00:33:13.599 There's what that's pretty superficial. 00:33:13.759 --> 00:33:16.160 There's how, which is really digging into the core. 00:33:16.319 --> 00:33:19.599 What we do, how we behave, and last, there's why. 00:33:20.720 --> 00:33:22.240 Why do we work? 00:33:23.519 --> 00:33:31.680 And here's one of the problems is that a lot of us, even Christ followers, don't know exactly how to find our identity. 00:33:32.079 --> 00:33:34.960 And we haven't found our identity in Jesus. 00:33:35.119 --> 00:33:37.759 We haven't found our identity as children of God. 00:33:37.920 --> 00:33:41.519 And so we're searching for identity in things of this world. 00:33:41.839 --> 00:33:49.039 And the easiest thing to find our identity in is our career because we tend to conflate what we do with who we are. 00:33:49.759 --> 00:33:58.400 And the problem with this is if your identity is reliant on the things of this world, then this world itself can destroy your identity. 00:33:58.480 --> 00:34:12.719 If your identity is rooted in something that is above and beyond this world, then no matter what comes against you in your career, your life, your family, your marriage, whatever comes against you in this world cannot shake your identity because your identity is not found in this world. 00:34:12.800 --> 00:34:14.960 And so why do you work? 00:34:15.119 --> 00:34:25.360 In Colossians 3, it says, Whatever you do, do it from the heart as something done for the Lord and not for people, knowing that you will receive the reward of an inheritance from the Lord. 00:34:25.599 --> 00:34:29.280 Because you serve the Lord Christ. 00:34:31.039 --> 00:34:34.159 Your why is not connected to your job. 00:34:34.880 --> 00:34:38.719 Your why is something that is so much deeper. 00:34:39.679 --> 00:34:50.480 And because it is not connected to your job, whether you're in a job that you hate or whether you are already existing in your dream job, your why remains the same. 00:34:51.280 --> 00:34:56.480 You see, what earthly work does is it orients us towards an eternal purpose. 00:34:56.639 --> 00:35:01.039 Earthly work orients us towards an eternal purpose. 00:35:01.280 --> 00:35:08.480 One of our values here is to have a pilgrim's perspective, to recognize that we are strangers in this world. 00:35:08.719 --> 00:35:20.480 This world is not our final home, that we are living for a kingdom that is here in our hearts right now, but will be fully fulfilled after this life and after this world. 00:35:20.639 --> 00:35:27.199 And your purpose, no matter your job, is to bring glory to God and bring others to Jesus. 00:35:27.360 --> 00:35:30.480 The psalmist says it so beautifully in Psalm 127. 00:35:30.639 --> 00:35:35.920 He says, unless the Lord builds a house, its builders labor over it in vain. 00:35:36.159 --> 00:35:41.119 Unless the Lord watches over a city, the watchman stays alert in vain. 00:35:41.280 --> 00:35:46.559 In vain you get up early and you stay up late, working hard to have enough food. 00:35:46.719 --> 00:35:49.920 Yes, he gives sleep to the ones that he loves. 00:35:50.079 --> 00:36:00.079 And you can build the greatest career imaginable, and you can have the job that you have always desired, and you can root your identity in the things of this world. 00:36:00.159 --> 00:36:04.719 But eventually, when the world ends, so will your purpose. 00:36:04.880 --> 00:36:14.159 And we are called to live for a higher and grander purpose, to live for the purpose of bringing glory to God in every position that we are in. 00:36:14.320 --> 00:36:21.199 So, yes, if you're in a job that you hate, a toxic work environment, a supervisor who's terrible, you should put a plan together. 00:36:21.360 --> 00:36:32.000 You should fight fear, get out of your comfort zone, live below your means so you can pursue the training and skills that you need, update your resume, apply for those jobs, and move to something better. 00:36:32.159 --> 00:36:32.960 You should do that. 00:36:33.119 --> 00:36:46.239 And while you're doing it, we should dig deeper and look at how we are behaving at work and answer this question: Am I behaving at work in a way that if I were running my dream job, I'd hire myself? 00:36:51.920 --> 00:36:54.719 One of my favorite authors, his name is Simon Senec. 00:36:54.800 --> 00:36:58.159 He wrote a book called Start with Why, and this is where we start. 00:36:58.960 --> 00:37:00.320 We start with purpose. 00:37:01.280 --> 00:37:04.719 God created you with purpose, and he created you on purpose. 00:37:05.840 --> 00:37:07.199 And there's something really interesting. 00:37:07.280 --> 00:37:08.079 I saved it for the end. 00:37:08.159 --> 00:37:10.400 In Genesis 2:15, this is where we started. 00:37:10.719 --> 00:37:15.760 The Lord God took the man and placed him in the Garden of Eden to work it and to watch it. 00:37:17.199 --> 00:37:18.639 Work is a blessing. 00:37:18.880 --> 00:37:27.039 And that word work in the Hebrew that Genesis was written in, that word work is the same Hebrew word for worship. 00:37:28.960 --> 00:37:34.639 That's because proper work is an act of worship. 00:37:35.039 --> 00:37:39.599 And you were made to worship, to bring glory to God. 00:37:39.840 --> 00:37:44.000 And when I talk to people who are miserable at work, I always give the same advice. 00:37:44.239 --> 00:37:46.000