I don’t mean to sound melodramatic, but I truly believe that, when we peel back the layers of our troubles – even our career-related troubles, somewhere in there we will often find an element of sin. I know this is probably not easy to hear, but stick with me for a moment. You may just find the answer you’ve been looking for.
A Word About Sin
I’ve been rereading The Enemy Within by Kris Lundgaard in preparation for a class I’m teaching. Naturally, it has me thinking about sin. The subtitle of the book is “Straight talk about the power and defeat of sin.”
Sin is sneaky, insidious, and deadly. It comes in many shapes, sizes, and disguises. As Lundgaard aptly puts it, “Sin can be like trick birthday candles: you blow them out and smile, thinking you have your wish; then your jaw drops as they burst into flames.” Sin usually doesn’t leave quickly or easily. And when it has matured fully, it always leads to death (James 1:15). Maybe not immediately, but eventually, there are always consequences.
5 Ways Sin May be Showing Up in Your Career
There are a number of issues we could address here, but I want to mention five that I see and hear about often.
Fear
I am not talking about fear as sin. That is a discussion for another day. I am speaking of fear that leads to sin. Sometimes fear can cause us to do things we shouldn’t, or not do things we should. Fear of failure, fear of making a mistake, fear regarding God’s provision – all of these can contribute to underperformance, perfectionism, or a host of other career-halting challenges. If fear is affecting your career, it’s time to address it. We do this, primarily, by fixing our gaze on God – not ourselves or our circumstances.
People Pleasing (fear of man)
Trying to impress others and live up to their expectations has sabotaged many careers. Going along with the “underachieving crowd,” trying to keep up with the “overachieving crowd,” an unwillingness to stand up for our values and convictions, doing what people say we should do instead of what we believe we are called to do – all of these include elevating people to a place God never intended them to occupy. We are called to please the Lord. In fact, Ephesians 5:10 says that we are to try to discern what pleases Him. Why? So that we can do it. People pleasing is another career trap that must be avoided. We do this by seeking first and foremost to please God and bring Him glory in our work.
Love of Money
Have you ever taken a job solely for the money? Or perhaps pursued a line of work because of the expected pay? The truth is that we all need money, and money in and of itself is morally neutral. But the love of money leads to all kinds of sins, some of which may be affecting your career. One of the things I’ve heard over and over again from women who feel trapped in jobs they don’t love is that they are afraid to leave their current job because of the money. I’m not saying this shouldn’t be a factor, I don’t think it should be the factor.
If you are obsessed with money, or the things money can buy, your love of money may be affecting your career in ways you aren’t aware of. It may be impacting what you are and are not open to. I encourage you to really pray about this, and search the Scriptures. Ask the Lord to help you think and act rightly when it comes to money. If you do, you may find yourself feeling free to consider career options that have seemed out of reach solely because of money.
Slothfulness
This is not a word we hear very often, but it is important to consider – especially within our casual cultural milieu. Let me be clear – leisure and entertainment have their place. But they probably don’t deserve the slot many of us have placed them in.
Slothful is another word for lazy. Laziness is characterized by an unwillingness to work or use energy. Do you value work, or see it as a barrier or distraction from the things you truly enjoy? Sometimes an ill-fitting job can fuel disinterest, which manifests itself in slothfulness. Either way, it is a problem to not work (or not work hard) when you are supposed to. There is really no room for slothfulness on the job, regardless of how we feel about the work we are doing. This can be a real struggle, but it has to be nipped.
Discontentment/Entitlement
It is easy for us to erroneously believe that we are owed everything our hearts desire, but this simply is not true. I strongly encourage everyone to, if they have the opportunity, pursue a career they love and feel called and equipped to do. But I have to be honest and admit that there is no guarantee that it will happen. So our question becomes, will we embrace God’s will for our lives and careers, whatever it may be?
Paul talks about having learned to be content in any and all circumstances. When writing to Timothy, he goes on to say that godliness, with contentment, is great gain. Like Paul, we must strive to be content wherever we are. This is hard, and it is something I have definitely struggled with at times. For as long as you are in your current role (whether it’s another year, or another day), strive to be content.
There is a Way Out
The fact of the matter is that sin may be keeping you stuck as it relates to your career; but it doesn’t have to. What is the way out? It is the same as always when it comes to sin.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9
It can be hard to do this, but we must confess our sins to God – even as it relates to our careers. Furthermore, I believe it is important to have at least one person in your life that you can talk to about what’s really going on in your career, and to whom you can confess your career-related sins. It’s not fun, but it can be helpful to have people we can go to with the truth – who can pray for us and help hold us accountable as we forsake our sins and turn toward Christ.
How about you? Are you ready to be free? I would love to help. Reach out today for a complimentary discovery call. We can get started right away in helping you get unstuck.
