God's Secular Plans

One of the biggest of Satan’s lies, parroted these days mainly by well meaning preachers, is that there is a difference between “sacred” and “secular” when it comes to living as a disciple of Jesus. This leads to the damaging idea that there are “professional” and “ordinary” Christians; that ministry and mission are only the realm of the religious professionals and that “ordinary” Christians merely go to work.
Even a cursory reading of the New Testament will reveal clearly that your work matters to God. In fact, it is one of the places that Jesus expects you to work out your discipleship lifestyle. Some Christians, recognizing that the workplace is a waiting mission field, view their mission as a sort of “search and destroy” raid on the enemy camp, or a “scorch and burn” policy toward pagans. This is not at all what Jesus has in mind for you or your fellow workers.
Jesus wants you to be a living witness to the beauty of the gospel. You have the opportunity to love and serve the same people multiple times a week. You can show them that good triumphs over evil and that mercy triumphs over judgment. You can demonstrate the peace that passes understanding and the love that draws people to Jesus. And none of this has to be calculated or programmed by you or the church. It can, and should, be the result of taking your apprenticeship to Jesus seriously. When you gave your heart to Jesus and decided to follow him, he began teaching you what it means to walk with God. While we never follow perfectly, we do follow and make tremendous progress. We are “washed, justified, and set apart for God’s glory.” Our changed lives are evident and people who do not know God will wonder why we live as we do.
Don’t fall for the lie that God is only interested in you for a few hours a week! God has plans for all of your life – therefore, there is no “secular” portion of your life – all of your life is “sacred” – set apart for God’s holy purposes.