In a survey of about 400 South African Christians in secular work only 18% said they are living their calling in the workplace.
Most said that although their churches teach them to apply Biblical principles in the workplace it is difficult to live their calling amidst the diverse cultures and viewpoints they encounter at work, says Christian marketplace initiative Call 42 in its latest report.
The report based on a 2012 online survey of 1 300 Christians, including about 400 people working in a secular environment, notes that most working Christians indicated that they would benefit the most from personal testimonies of what God is doing in the workplace. Nearly half of the working Christians surveyed said they did not know of material or support that could help them to live their calling at work.
Survey results based on responses from all 1 300 respondents show that the biggest reason why people do not live out their calling is not their relationship with the Lord, or worldly distractions and desires, or fears, but misunderstanding of calling. Other findings of the survey of all the groups show that the majority of Christians want workplace mentors and that those who attend Christian business groups consider them to be essential.
Based on its latest report, Call 42 proposes a number of action steps for church leaders, marketplace ministers, and working Christians to follow in order for Christians to purposefully live out their calling at work. These action steps, as well as detailed survey results are available online. Call 42 will be publishing more reports which will be made available on their website where anyone may register to receive report notifications.
I attended the brainstorming session in Stellenbosch at which this survey was discussed and there was general agreement about the role of mentors. The baby boomer generation presents us with the ideal source of potential mentors, but we will need to have some input on generational differences.