Hello! last time I posted I said that a person has to have faith to be able to integrate their faith. I presume that you do. To begin you must have been discipled. I learned early in my walk with the Lord that I did not know how to communicate with him. I found this out when our church had a prayer vigil in preparation for a Lay Witness Mission. We were urged to sign up and it felt that I must take part so I went out to sign up. The only times left were at 2 AM and 2:15 AM. I thought they had to be out of their mind to expect anyone to sign up for those times, but I felt I had to sign up, but I did for the 2 AM spot. I went to bed that night and set my alarm for 1:30. When it beeped I got up brushed my teeth, dressed, and went to the church. When I got there the lady who was praying left, and I knelt at the communion rail. It was then that I did not know what to pray for. So I said out loud, "Lord I don't know what they want, but whatever it is let them have it! I then spent the next 14 minutes and 30 seconds realizing that I did not know how to pray.
I am a person who believes in good communication so I read a number of books on prayer, and developed a prayer life. I was not going to be like most church members who only pray 1 minute a day. It took me a while to find out how God communicated with me, but I did learn when I got a copy of Good News For Modern Man. God illuminated the scriptures for me and I found that I needed to read the scriptures each day. Most church goers do not read it but one a week. In time I found that the Means of Grace were necessary for me to grow as a Christian. There are other things a person has to learn to do in this relationship, so I have summarized them all in a book entitled The Nuts and Bolts of Discipleship. I would suggest you get a copy and read it if you want to facilitate your growth. (www.InstChristiangrowth.org)
After you have been discipled you need a call from God to know what you are going to do to serve him. What you need to do to get your call is to tell God you are available and ready to go. "Here am I, send me". Then keep your eyes and heart open to see what attracts you. It will be biblical, and you will find that there will be opportunities for you to indulge your interests. You certainly ought to look at your occupation to see what opportunities exist there for you to be a Christian worker, boss or whatever you are. The best way to start is to love your fellow workers.
I once read a book by Keith Miller entitled Setting Men Free. In it he said that if you wanted to change peoples lives you should affirm (love) them. At the time I had a secretary who was not the most pleasant person in the world, so I thought I would find out if his technique worked. One of my patients told me that I should knock her in the head. "She is one of the nastiest people I have run into lately". I realized I had to do something so when smy secretary came in with a new hairdo I complimented on it and told her how much I liked it. She smiled and thanked me. Then a week or so later she came in with a new pantsuit on and when I saw it I told her that it was very attractive, and how with her new hairdo she was really attractive. Then when she typed a manuscript for me that I was going to present at a meeting the next week, I told her. "Thank you for the job you did for me. That is a said anything wrong. It's just that no one ever says anything nice to me. My dad used to tell me I was ugly and no man would ever want me. Sonny my husband never says anything nice to me. I'm just not used to it". After that she was a changed woman, and everyone commented on the change including the patient who thought I ought to knock her in the head
Many times you will see ministries that appeal to you, or they will be a new use for your talents. I have always been a person who loved to teach. So it was only natural that I should want to teach others about God. I have been teaching 64 years, 46 of them as Christian. I love to share God with people and even more to help Christians grow. This was the reason I took a job in a seminary after I retired from Duke. I had the knowledge and I passed it on. One good example of integrating ones faith is the president to Chick-Fil-A. His faith is reflected in the treatment of his employees and customers.
Finally determine if you have a call, If you don't ask God to tell you what he wants you to do. Then whatever he says unto you--do it.
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