Hello everyone, Shalom in Christ! Welcome again to the devotional program, “Joseph at the Marketplace” by GLOBAL REACHOUT. I am Tom Nohelty.

Day 14: Loving Others on the Job

Today, the Scripture is taken from: Genesis 41: 46-57.

Theme verse:

“and the seven years of famine began to come, as Joseph had said. There was famine in all lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread.” Genesis 41: 54 (ESV)

How does your job allow you to love others?

This isn’t just about being kind to your colleagues, although you should do that. Loving others goes beyond your specific workplace. You are part of the broader socioeconomic fabric of your community. As you faithfully go about your job, you are serving the welfare of others.

When Babylon invaded Judah and carried its people into exile, the prophet Jeremiah advised the exiles to put down roots and serve the common good:

This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” Jeremiah 29:4–7

How does your job provide a pathway for you to seek the peace and prosperity of your city? This principle isn’t just about helping professions in fields like healthcare or education. Let’s say you’re a janitor. You’re caring for others by helping to provide clean places to do business or to spend time with friends. Or take a civil engineer. As you design roads and bridges, you’re keeping people safe and helping them get to where they need to go.

If you’re an entrepreneur launching a business and creating jobs, you’re giving people who work for you a way to support their families. Tom Nelson, president of Made to Flourish, said, “In today’s world, the best way to love your neighbor is to hire them.”

Ministry isn’t just for full-time religious professionals. It’s for everyone. It’s for you. Your job is a way to love others.

Let us look at the workplace through the lens of Joseph’s story. At the age of seventeen, Joseph tended the sheep with his brothers (Genesis 37: 2 till 3 ESV). Later, he moved on to work in Potiphar’s house as a slave (Genesis 39: 1 till 6 ESV). The Lord was with him. He was made an overseer and was successful in all that he had undertaken in the household. He was 30 years old when Pharaoh promoted him in Egypt (Genesis 41: 46 ESV).

As Joseph served as second-in command in Egypt, he looked beyond his own benefit. He sought the welfare of all Egypt and beyond. He made sure that others had food during the famine. He served as a wise steward. And others experienced blessing through his stewardship: “There was famine in all the other lands, but in the whole land of Egypt there was food” (Genesis 41:54). God used Joseph’s faithfulness to save many lives.

The sphere of Joseph’s influence and success grew as he served the Lord wholeheartedly. God used him to bless his family, the household of Potiphar and finally, the country of Egypt when he stored grain in preparation for the famine that was to come.

Like Joseph, the Lord has endowed you with knowledge, talents and skills for your job. When you see your work as service for others with love flowing out from your lives serving God and others, you will grow in your jobs. By doing so, the Lord will gradually enlarge your areas of influence to bless your colleagues, communities, nation and even beyond the shores. The exhortation in Luke 16: 10, “Whoever is faithful with very little will also be faithful with much…(ESV)” is a reminder to serve God with all your heart in all that you do (Col 3:23 ESV).

Wherever God has placed you, he has a broader purpose for your work than your status or comfort. That truth can give meaning even to tedious and difficult work. And, as you take that mindset, others will notice your attitude. It will make you stand out in your workplace and give you opportunities to point to God.

Ask God to deposit the love for others in your heart at the workplace, in the communities and the nation. What does it mean to pursue the peace and prosperity of the city that you are in?

Let’s Pray:

Lord, we pray for the Word of God to illumine our lives. Grant us the love for others and to dedicate our work as a form of service to You and others. Use us as vessels to bless others through our vocations and also to point them to You.  Imprint Your Word in us, that is, to seek the peace and prosperity of the nation that we reside in. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Time for Reflections.

1. How does your job allow you to love others?

2. How are you seeking the peace and prosperity of the city where God has placed you?

3. What do you want to change about how you see your job?