Your Work Matters - Christ Community Church

How should faith and work intersect? Today we have a special guest, Paige Wiley, joining us. Paige brings a wealth of knowledge and experience, having worked in various settings and ministries and now working within the team at Made To Flourish as the Associate Director of Engagement. In this episode, we explore the importance of understanding one’s vocation and how it connects to our faith, as well as the anxiety and questions that arise when it comes to discerning God’s will in our careers. Paige shares insights from her recent project on bridging the gap between college and the next phase of life as well as the fascinating concept of “skills mapping” for churches and how it can be utilized to foster community and discipleship. Listen now to this thought-provoking conversation about work, calling, and the journey towards finding purpose in our daily lives.

THREE KEY TAKEAWAYS:

The importance of integrating faith and work: There is a journey to understanding the connection between faith and work. Work is not just a means of evangelizing or giving money to the church, but a valuable way to live out God’s design and contribute to the restoration of all things.
Addressing vocational anxiety: There is increasing anxiety among college students about their future careers and which has increased the need to make a meaningful connection between work and identity. There is a common fallacy of viewing God’s will as a specific target or destination, which can contribute to stress and anxiety. For this reason we need to talk early and often about faith and work to alleviate vocational anxiety.
Utilizing skills mapping for church community and discipleship: Skills mapping is a process that helps churches understand the vocational skills and passions of their congregation, and can be used to create support groups and facilitate connections among individuals with similar professions or roles. We want churches to engage with people across different life stages, including young adults and older adults, to foster community and discipleship around the work that we do, paid or unpaid.

#FaithAndWork #CallingAndVocation #BridgingTheGap #SkillMapping #ConnectingCongregations #SundayToMonday #IntegratingFaithAndLife #SupportingProfessionals #ThirdThirdOfLife #ChurchBeyondSunday

GUEST BIO:

Paige Wiley grew up in a Christian environment where work and faith were presented as separate entities. This upbringing shaped her curiosity about the intersection of work and calling. While studying communications and media at Kansas State University, Paige was heavily involved in her campus ministry and also worked at a career center, helping students discover their career paths. This experience intensified her interest in understanding why people choose a certain profession and what drives their vocational choices.

QUOTES:

“At the end of the day, my belief was that work is part of this necessary evil that we have to do in order to either evangelize to our coworkers or to give our money to the church.”
— Paige Wiley

“Within redemption, we get to see how work is a way of loving and serving our neighbor, and this allows us to see glimpses of heaven.”
— Paige Wiley

“One of the ways that I like to frame it is: A good shepherd knows his sheep, and the skill mapping survey is really meant to ask folks where they’re at. Instead of asking to put more on their plate, ask, “What’s on your plate? What are you doing? Where are you already on mission, where are you already serving?””
— Paige Wiley

RESOURCES:

Made To Flourish

Skill Mapping

Worked Up – Paige Wiley & Luke Bobo

Work Matters: Connecting Sunday Worship to Monday Work – Tom Nelson

Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God’s Work – Tim Keller

Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God’s Will – Kevin DeYound

Whatever You Do: Six Foundations for an Integrated Life – Luke Bobo

God at Work: Your Christian Vocation in All of Life – Gene Veith

Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived, Joyful Life – Bill Burnett and David J. Evans

CHAPTERS:

[00:06:10] Faith and work: wrestling and finding fulfillment.
[00:08:10] God at the center, wrestling with work theology.
[00:12:51] College students struggle with identity and anxiety.
[00:15:14] God’s will as a problematic treasure hunt.
[00:17:46] Gathering to discuss faith and work after college.
[00:22:20] Made to Flourish offers a skill mapping process.
[00:26:28] Interviews explore Monday life of congregation members.
[00:29:26] Connecting educators, healthcare workers, entrepreneurs, and parents.
[00:32:46] Is God with me in career choices?
[00:34:38] Dream job for Paige Wiley.

A Quiet Catalyst in the Arts

by Randy Bonifield | Oct 11, 2023 | Featured, Headlines | 2 comments

A Quiet Catalyst in the Arts

Christ Community has always been intentional about its mission and discipleship. A few years ago we began to think about how to be a more intentional influence on the culture of our communities and the world. What would it look like if we didn’t just observe culture but participated in its cultivation? What if, rather than critiquing or vilifying it, we became active participants; in redeeming it and creating redemptive work that influenced it?

Part of this shift in our thinking led us to the arts. We began to imagine using our creativity and talents to positively impact the world. We wanted to create art that was beautiful, thought-provoking, and redemptive.

What would it look like if we didn’t just observe culture but participated in its cultivation?

The Power in Art

Arts have the power to transform individuals and communities, and we were brazen enough to believe that we could impact the artistic culture in our city and around the world. Art can help us see the world in new ways, to understand each other better, and to connect with our shared humanity.

We began to imagine using our own creativity and talents to create art that was not only beautiful, but thought-provoking and redemptive, and encouraging one another to embrace works of art and the artists who create them. The arts could be a powerful tool to actively engage and steward the gifts of our congregants to influence the world for the glory of God by supporting artists, performance organizations, scholarship programs, and missional partnerships.

Looking at how far we have come in the past few years, I am grateful to see the fruit of those conversations.

Serving the Artistic Community

The Four Chapter Gallery is a prime example of how we are putting these conversations into action. Celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, the gallery is a beautiful space in the Crossroads District that serves Kansas City’s thriving artistic community. With regular gallery hours and a rotating selection of art installations, it has become a beloved presence in the city, especially on First Fridays.

More than just a space to exhibit art, the Four Chapter Gallery is also a community hub where artists come together for encouragement, collaboration, and deep conversation. Under the leadership of curator Kelly Kruse, the gallery is helping to support a new generation of artists who are creatively renewing the world alongside God through the act of generative creation.

A Storytelling Mission

Inspired by a similar mission, two other Christ Community congregants set off on a venture to engage the arts by creating movies that make a difference. Stephen and Mary Pruitt, an economics professor, and an up-until-then stay-at-home mom, focused on crafting beautiful art through the visual storytelling medium of film. Despite having no prior filmmaking experience, the Pruitts set out to make movies that would shape imaginations and spark better conversations. Fifteen years later, their fifth full-length feature film, State of Grace, is making the rounds at film festivals around the country, including two highly acclaimed festivals in Los Angeles and New York City, along with a Kansas City premiere at the Glenwood Arts Theatre (coming October 13-15, 2023).

State of Grace is a timely and beautiful film about a young mother who loses control of her life and the custody of her one-year-old daughter, Grace, due to a growing addiction to fentanyl. Inspired by actual events, it is a deeply moving film about the power of community and the price of love. Another example of how Christ Community is quietly encouraging artists to create art that sparks meaningful conversations.

Consider Engaging

Creativity is taking place all around us in closer proximity than you could imagine, and supporting the growing impact of Christ Community in the arts is as simple as taking the time to view exhibits and shows being presented. In a world filled with endless entertainment options, it is easy for artists to wonder if they are just adding to the noise. One of the best ways we can support the arts in our community is by taking the time to notice and appreciate this continued creation. Engaging locally, relationally, and intentionally moves this mission forward. And when we are relationally connected to the artists who created the work, we view and respond to it differently.

In a world filled with endless entertainment options, it is easy for artists to wonder if they are just adding to the noise. One of the best ways we can support the arts in our community is by taking the time to notice and appreciate this continued creation.

Join Christ Community in our mission to engage in the arts and influence culture. Start by supporting the opportunities for engagement right around you. Two ideas for this month include visiting First Friday at the Four Chapter Gallery and seeing State of Grace at the Glenwood. Maybe next month attend an art festival in the community, find an artist whose work resonates with you, and start a conversation.