Long have the people of God viewed the work that they do from Mondays to Fridays as totally separate from the ministry they are involved in after work or on weekends. But over the last few decades, there has been much progress in dispelling this perception and breaking down the walls of dichotomy between the sacred and the secular. One of the global leaders who is leading this effort is Os Hillman who speaks about this perfectly; he says “Today, there is a new move of God that is focused on the 9 to 5 window. This window represents all those who work – regardless of whether they are homemakers, construction workers, nurses, executives, Fortune 500 CEOs, or pastors and vocational ministers. The one thing most of us have in common is that we work. However, the one thing most workers have failed to do is bring Jesus into their work lives. But God is changing this.”

Driven by the constantly increasing demand for growth and progress, people spend more and more time at work these days. It is no longer a surprise to work fifty or sixty hour weeks, not to mention the emails you reply on your mobile or on the weekends. If over 60% of our productive waking hours are spent at work and God has nothing to do with it, then how much of our lives does He really have? There is no such thing as part time Christianity. For those of us who have been called to the marketplace, our work and all our time spent doing it must be our primary channel in bringing Jesus to the world around us. This is what marketplace evangelism simply means – to make Jesus a reality where you work and who you work with. This includes the personhood as well as the values of Jesus.

While this is something we all need to do, I am by no means suggesting that it is easy. Marketplace evangelism is a challenge and more so with each passing day as the pace of life gets faster and faster. Each of us will also have our own unique challenges with the different work that we do and the different workplaces that we are at. In that sense, there are no “experts” in marketplace evangelism and we are all called to be the best that we can be in our place of work. There are, however, some good principles and tips that are universal.

With that in mind, I embarked on the following interview with three of my veteran Christian marketplace friends, out of which emerged a wealth of good advice that we can all learn from:

Agnes Loek, Director – Product Marketing, SingTel (AL)
Wvgen Wong, Chief Architect, Risto Mobile Solutions (WW)
Jason Teo, Head of Enterprise Business – Asia Pacific, Sony Ericsson (JT)

What are some of the experiences or challenges you face with marketplace evangelism?

AL: If you are open about your faith, you can almost guarantee that all your colleagues will watch you as an example and that is tough! You will feel judged at times and pressured at other times, especially when you don’t think you’re a great example. Especially when some work decisions are in direct conflict with biblical values, you have to choose. Sometime, there is little choice but to cave in and trust the bigger picture that God’s will and ways will prevail in the end.

WW: I absolutely agree with Agnes, it’s tough. We know that we have to honor our employer but sometimes we are just caught in the middle. There are many available temptations and short cuts. For example, bribery is rife in our region and may be the only option of doing business. However, I have also experienced God’s hand and delivery on many occasions. Pray to Him and trust Him to help you do the right thing!

JT: Entertainment is part and parcel of many of our jobs. In the bulk of those scenarios, it is hard to say “No.” Yet being in the sales line, I have always managed to get out of those situations without loss or detriment to my career. Besides much prayer, you also need to actively avoid such scenarios yourself. Pray also for supportive bosses who will respect your values.

What practical and proactive steps can you take to reach out to your colleagues?

AL: Be there for them when it counts! For example, when a loved one of a colleague recently passed away suddenly, I made special effort to comfort her with God’s Word by buying her a Christian CD and books for the deceased’s kids to teach them about death and loss. This is on top of lots of phone calls and text messages. Through this encounter, I also understood why I had to suffer the loss of my own mother four months before that, since I was able to comfort her in a way that I experienced myself. Just sow the seed and trust God for the rest, don’t expect immediate results.

Another good way of evangelizing with subtlety is that as I lead in projects, I have the opportunity to name the projects and I ensure that I use biblical names like “Project Goliath.” This way, it has caused other colleagues to wonder and question further, thus opening up opportunities for them to learn Bible stories.

WW: Offer prayers for them all the time. It can be for a family problem or a sickness or anything at all.

JT: Meet practical needs and take practical steps. Recently, a colleague shared with me that he was having marriage problems and I gave him the book The 5 Love Languages to help him out.

What good tips or advice can you provide for others?

AL: People often feel that Christians think of themselves as superior or holy. Hence I always try to take on a more personal Christian position of weakness and portray the fact that we are Christians not because we are holy but because we acknowledge that we need help. God loves everyone. Workplace support and accountability is also very important so try to get together with your Christian brothers and sisters to encourage each other whenever you can.

WW: Don’t be weird! Just share with subtlety and whenever you can. But remember to stand firm for your values as a matter of your lifestyle and not as a rule book of commandments. Learn to “provoke” your non-Christian colleagues to jealously want to know our God. We need to shine brighter as the world gets darker.

JT: People see love in action. You need to meet felt needs as part of evangelism.

For marketplace Christians, the greatest mission field that is right in front of us is our workplace. The battle for the hearts of this mission field is being fought between Jesus and the idols of busyness, power, materialism, and money among others. If Jesus is not slowly becoming a reality through your life at work, then surely the other forces of this world are. Proverbs 24:11-12 says “Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. If you say, ‘But we knew nothing about this,’ does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?”

Justin is a proud member of the Eagles Emerging Leader Development Program (ELDP) Class of 2012. He is happily married to Yvette and they have two wonderful children, Natasha and Noah.

The New International Version of the Bible has been referenced.

The quote is from Os Hillman’s book TGIF – Today God Is First which is a daily devotional book and it comes from the reading for January 3 titled “The 9 To 5 Window”.