Sara
letterpress printer
“My hands are usually inky, often greasy, and always busy,” says Sara. “The state of my heart and the work of my hands are intimately connected.”
“Left to my own devices, I worship gods of wood and lead, ink and paper, ideas and execution,” she shares. “My identity in Christ as God’s daughter, washed clean in Christ, allows me to see how God has blessed the work of my hands. Only he makes my work worthy. I pray that God will continue to grow in me a generous, hospitable, others-centric heart that cares more for the work of God’s hands than the work of my own.”
Because Jesus lives, Sara lives for Jesus.
What do you do?
×Matt
Pastor
“If I didn’t live for Jesus, I would be chasing satisfaction in success and in being the best,” says Matt. “The gospel changed my work and performance from being ultimate and giving me identity of ‘successful man’ to being something I do to point to Jesus.”
“If I use my talents and hands to show me off as talented and successful, I am against his purposes and unfaithful. I want the work of my hands to show off the workmanship of Jesus in my life. Everyone should look at my life and say, ‘Look how gracious Jesus is to Matt,’ not, ‘Matt is so talented.’ This means my failures, not my success, make him look better and more gracious.”
Because Jesus lives, Matt lives for Jesus.
What do you do?
×Ruth
Harpist
“The biggest way the gospel has affected my work has simply been to know that all I do is ultimately for God and because of God,” Ruth says. “Constantly reminding myself that it is God who provides both the ability and opportunities to work with my hands—whether it’s in music or anything else—has provided me with confidence to take risks and to be generous with my work.”
“I want to always be alert to ways that I can serve others through my work, which I think involves knowing the community and people God has placed you around. One of my ongoing prayers is that I’d always see my ‘day job’ with the proper perspective. It’s an important part of my life, but it’s not the only thing God has called me to do or what defines me. I want to be faithful in pursuing God and his glory in all aspects of my life.”
Because Jesus lives, Ruth lives for Jesus.
What do you do?
×Steve
hotrod machinist
As a machinist, Steve spent 17 years keeping operational a missionary hospital ship that served African nations through medical treatment, often crafting engine parts by hand. Today, he creates custom hotrods.
“It’s just like Chariots of Fire when he said, ‘I feel God smile when I run,’” says Steve, who’s been a machinist for decades. “It’s totally when I’m in the zone, and I’m working on the hotrod, being creative, it’s like, I feel God smile.”
“We’ve all got our role,” he says. “It’s all kingdom work. So this is just a natural outcome of a gearhead coming to know Jesus and now using his talents to work on a car that opens doors to conversations about God.”
Because Jesus lives, Steve lives for Jesus.
What do you do?
×
Rick Warren
Greg Laurie
Lecrae
Nick Vujicic
Miles McPherson
James MacDonald
Craig Groeschel
Mark Driscoll
It's a common enough question—and one you're usually prepared to answer. But how often are you asked who you do it for?
In 1 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul says to "do all to the glory of God" so that many "may be saved." Undergirding this conviction is his belief that the resurrected Jesus is alive and ruler over all of life.
The resurrection changes everything. Jesus is alive today, ruler of all, and actively advancing his kingdom. As Abraham Kuyper famously said, "In the total expanse of human life there is not a single square inch of which the Christ, who alone is sovereign, does not declare, 'That is mine!'"
So, what do we do with this? Do we continue on, acting as if there is no connection between our everyday actions and decisions—what we do—and the eternal purposes of Jesus? Do we continue living the lie that some things are "sacred" while others are "secular"?
The 2012 Resurgence Conference is an invitation to start thinking differently. It will be a call to every Christian to live all of life to the glory of Jesus and for the benefit of his kingdom, to say, by God's grace…
Because Jesus lives, we live for Jesus.