Your Work Matters to God

by Doug Sherman, William Hendricks

Your Work Matters to God demonstrates just how important secular work is to God. Whether you are a man or woman, once you realize how many different ways there are to influence your coworkers for Christ without preaching a word, you’ll be challenged to develop a lifestyle so striking and true, the people you work with will be eager to let you talk about what makes you different.

• Indexed for easy reference

Genres: Christian, Business, Spirituality, Christianity, Nonfiction, Self Help, Discipleship

288 pages, Paperback

First published November 30, 1986

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Doug Sherman is a husband and father, businessman and pilot, author and speaker. He has written several books on faith in the marketplace, including Your Work Matters to God, and has a master’s degree from Dallas Theological Seminary. He met Jesus at age fourteen and has loved every minute of the adventure of walking with God.

Doug Sherman first encountered Jesus when he was fourteen years old and has been Fathered by Him ever since. He is a husband and father, businessman and pilot, author and speaker. He has written several books on faith in the marketplace, including Your Work Matters to God, and has a master’s degree from Dallas Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Jan, live in Austin, Texas. They have three children and five grandchildren.

Reviews

[Gary Patton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever been asked by a Christian: "What's your calling?" Ever felt like s(he) meant what did you do inside "the church"? And felt ashamed when you didn't have a good enough answer?

I was and did until I read Doug Sherman and William Hendricks book many years ago!

In "Your Work Matters to God" I learned that "ministry" meant more than working in or for the "traditional, institutional church". I learned further that "secular work" is a phoney term invented by religious people with an institutional church-oriented "agenda". Holy vs. secular is NOT Biblical. Most importantly, I learned that what I did in down-town Toronto, first as an HR Executive, and later as a Management Consultant, was just as important to God as going on a "Missions Trip" or being a Deacon or Elder.

I excitedly discovered that sharing Jesus with my work colleagues and the clients I met at work or neighbours near home, whom Holy Spirit brought across my path daily, was more important to God than "bringing them to church" like many Pastors encourage.

This book clarified for me, in the power of Holy Spirit, that being a member of the Christian Business Men's Committee (CBMC) and The Navigators of Canada (Navs) community outreach groups, was as fulfilling of the Great Commission as knocking on apartment doors in areas where I neither worked nor lived as part of my church's Evangelism Explosion Group.

And please don't hear me saying that "Missions Trips", "evangelism Explosion" or similar church programs and being a church Deacon or Elder are not OK or worthwhile.

What I am saying is that the latter are just other "callings" than ministering (serving) through one's daily workplace / neighbourhood activity. Plus, I'm also saying that some churches often don't clearly communicate the above Biblical truths. Nor the fact that being a Jesus Follower is a lifestyle ...regardless of what you do for a living and whether or not you participate in a church program.

Whether your church teaches the above clearly, you'll still find Messrs. Sherman's and Hendricks' book encouraging and a breath of fresh, non-religious air. This will be especially true if you are a work-person or a home-maker. I recommend it to you, highly!

Enjoy and blessings,

GaryFPatton (gfp '42™)

[Vaughn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sherman and Hendricks wrote “Your Work Matters to God” in 1990, but don’t let that put you off. It’s one of the best treatments on this vital topic, integrating faith and career, that’s been written and is referenced by many even in more current books.

The book's major themes include:

1. The different views of secular careers often held by Christians
2. Despite the effects of sin in the workplace, God does care (personally) about our careers
3. Working for God gives (His work, His way and trusting Him to provide His results) gives more dignity, meaning, and purpose to work than of working just to satisfy one’s self
4. Determining which job matches the way He’s designed you and will honor Christ and allow you to serve others (and when / if you should change careers)

Included is a helpful discourse for those considering full-time ministry. Food for thought: "only one-third of the membership of a local church can be given a job doing church work. So if you think that serving the Lord means doing some work in church, then two-thirds of you are doomed to frustration and disappointment." More Christians need to see their current jobs as God's place for them to minister to others for His glory.

Read the book and be encouraged to have a different and eternal perspective on your job!

[Linda Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a thorough and comprehensive exploration of the subject of work and where it fits in our relationship to God and in our spiritual lives. It is NOT an easy read - getting the most out of it requires careful reflection. It took me a long time to get through it but it is definitely worth the effort.

[Paul, · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is relatively old (1987), it is out-of-print, and its examples are out of date. I found it in a church library, without expecting much. But it has been turned out to be very helpful. Sherman offers a detailed and practical look at how God values work, the complications introduced to work by sin and the Fall, and then tries to formulate a biblical perspective on the whole. Overall, a good read. Kind of crazy to realize the depth of the cocaine crisis and the morality crisis at work in the 80s!

**IMPORTANT NOTE** - There is a very poorly formatted copy of this book available for the Kindle. Don't waste your time!

[Adrienne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was looking for a book that would encourage and equip my teenage sons, who have recently taken on part time work. This is the perfect book to help them think about their jobs from God’s perspective, and it offers much practical advice for how to be an effective Christian witness in the workplace.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rated: B-
I have great respect for Bill Hendrick. Truly a man of God following in his father's footsteps. This book was mostly written by his co-author, Doug Sherman, founder of Career Impact Ministries. I recommended this book to clients and participants in our Career Transition Workshop. Good survey of how your work and God should interact in life. Mostly good, but basic sound advice.

[Russell Gehrlein · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book changed my life!

[Lendl Meyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many good principles, old and new. A needed reminder and perspective on work.

[David Goh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sound, significant truths for the Christian worker, this book is both encouraging and enlightening. All work, no matter how small, fits and fulfils God's greater purpose.

At the same time, Sherman and Hendricks exhort us to stand up for morality and sincere workplace evangelism, skirting the little traps of American culture. Small groups are raised as an effective method of accountability.

My gripe with the book is its verbose and meandering style of writing. I believe it could have been shorter and punchier.

[Barry Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extraordinary book on integrating work and Christian life. Extensive Biblical overview, including quotes from D. Sayers, G. Friesen, H.R. Rookmaaker, G.K. Chesterton, R.C. Sproul and others. Part One speaks of how Christians view work,challenging the dominant views (secular, to tithe, as a mission field) as being less than Biblical. The authors (as it is co-written, they always write in the 1st person) then speak of how God views work in Part Two. Speaking of the instrinsic value of work and the practical contributions of labor, they also discuss the impact that sin has on our work and the workplace, as well as Christ’s potential impact (New Work or New Workers is the chapter title). Part Three focuses on the difference that this Christian “work-view” should make. We are truly working for God, not man. This final section provides some advice on career choice (cites SIMA - System for Identifying Motivated Abilities, from the book Finding a Job You Can Love by Ralph Mattson and Arthur Miller - quite similar to B. Haldane’s SIMS), income, lifestyle, even leisure. I was particularly impressed with chapters 11 and 15 - Evil in the Workplace and Relating to Non-Christian Co-Workers. The authors, both graduates of Dallas Theological Seminary, also provide some advice to “the new clergy” as Christ’s representatives equipping each saint for the ministry.

All in all, an exceptional book with much Biblical scholarship and an excellent suggested reading list.

[Kwaku Osafo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read for Christians. God is our first boss. Do all your work with that in mind (Good work, I mean). You're contributing to His grand plan.
I love how the author backs his arguments with scripture, and captures common misconceptions Christians have about work. He gives us a view of work through God's lens.


Came back to finish this after putting it down for a while.

The Christian life isn't just for Sundays. Our faith in Christ must show in all spheres of our lives (we're the fragrance of Christ after all, aren't we), especially in our work, because that's where we spend most of our time. Again, our professional work isn't secular or irrelevant to God. Whether you drill holes in metals or manage a front desk, you're doing God's work since you're meeting the needs of His people, and we must give it our best. "Whatever you do, do as unto the Lord." This book was an awesome read. Sherman highlights the practicality of the faith to work, bridging the chasm between the two. Matthew 5:16 still holds. As Christians, we need to go out into this dark world and let our light shine.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Again between 3 and 4 stars for this one; I'd be interested to read in a year's time once I'm fully ensconced in the working world. As this was written in the 80s and directly to an American Evangelical audience, some of it feels a bit dated at times, but of course the main crux and root of the gospel and a Biblical view of work are as applicable and pertinent now as then! Gives a refreshing new perspective on work not just as a means to an end but as a God-honouring way of life - and that applies not just to 'holy' work as distinct from normal jobs. Would recommend to anyone.

[Monique Marquardt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Made me re-evaluate my real job in the workplace. If I'm going to work then I need to extend myself to others more and bring God into every situation. There are so many people at work that need Him and if you're there as a Christian then your true work is to work at helping them get to know and to love Jesus.

[Jimmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good resource for people struggling with how their secular work fits into the larger picture of spiritual work.

However, this book is somewhat outdated and takes a more conservative approach than I would.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I.read this book in college and did a paper on Christian Ethics in the workplace. Good book. Though, I wish I still had that paper I wrote. I had interviewed some prominent local Christian businessmen and discovered just how taken advantage of some Christian business owners are.

[sharon]

nangita pa ko sa store....

[Carol Ho · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview on the value of work... was a bit dry, but had great foundational concepts. Helps to undo the two-story view, that some jobs are more "spiritual" than others, etc.

[Tre Pryor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is for anyone who wonders whether God cares about your work life. Much runs counter to some basic human preconceptions and even religious themes, but I believe it to be true.