Faith at Work

I was reminded today about not splitting my Sunday self from my 'rest of week' self.

As a hospital chaplain, every day was a God-be-present day.

Every morning we prayed - for the world, for each other, for our patients & families & staff. Every hour was marked by Love-relationships and Spirit-learning. Every visit was surprise encounter with the Holy. Every set of eyes beamed Jesus. Every threshold I crossed was prayed over. Every wall-mounted hand-sanitizer "washed my hands in innocence, O Lord, that I may go about your altar; singing a song of thanksgiving and proclaiming all your wonderful deeds..." Every evening on-call was surrender to the Almighty Pager. I felt drenched in God.

So what's changed? my spiritual director asked.

Um, well, it's - you know, WORK. Ahem.

Yea, so? How can you remain awake to how God's working in your whole-life, not just your Sunday-life?

First, I'll begin with prayer.

God help me to remain awake, since sleeping on the job is really not acceptable. Focus on the relationships and allow the interruptions to flow like water. Mark the day with prayer-spots, just as before. Enter meetings grounded. Breathe. Seek and serve Jesus in every person I meet. Extend hospitality - radically - to everyone and especially The Other. Laugh at my box-of-office. Be spontaneous. Speak out for justice. Become disinterested in numbers and love my coworkers, my campaign coordinators, my chief executives, my janitors, my agencies... and I'm going to try, with God's help, to show up. In this moment.


Stay wide-awake in prayer. Most of all, love each other as if your life depended on it. Love makes up for practically anything. Be quick to give a meal to the hungry, a bed to the homeless—cheerfully. Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so all get in on it: if words, let it be God's words; if help, let it be God's hearty help. That way, God's bright presence will be evident in everything through Jesus, and he'll get all the credit as the One mighty in everything—encores to the end of time. Oh, yes! 1 Peter 4:7 (The Message)

How are you remaining awake in your rest-of-week Love Life?