"For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." --Philippians 1:21

"For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." --Philippians 1:21

I can't parallel park! Now, I'm not saying I have trouble doing it, I'm saying I can't do it.

Street mimes have been known to make a killing off the crowds that gather to watch me try. Metro Boston police officers get overtime pay to direct traffic around the site of my attempts. During the holidays, church choirs schedule their sidewalk performances near the point of my targeted empty space, knowing it will draw crowds.
Give me a truck and trailer, put two Porsches at the docks with six-inch clearance on either side, and I'll back that puppy in while sipping coffee and singing "I'm a Little Teapot". (Okay, so maybe I'm exaggerating a little). But give me a Volkswagen Beetle and two open parking spaces, and I'll turn a simple act into an arduous process.

Every day, every single day, there are managers pushing workers into roles they simply can't do. Every day, every single day, there are workers pushing themselves into roles they simply can't do. We decide that shoving ourselves into the fast track is the only way to achieve success. So we consign our unused gifts and talents to the wastebasket of our lives in order to keep pace with the perceptions of success on the world's terms. "Someday..." we promise ourselves, thinking we'll find time to be who we were created to be when we've achieved security or success on the world's terms. For many of us, "someday" never comes, smothered by our inability to see that the ladder of success chosen on our terms or the world's terms is very often merely a treadmill.
Oh, we may do our roles competently, but the stress of working outside our God-given design makes other parts of our lives difficult, even untenable, especially for those around us.
We like to blame the managers. Truth is, though, we often choose to be used out of sync because it fits the objectives we've set for ourselves apart from God. We want to matter, we want to be significant, we want more money, we want more power, we want security, we want more leisure, we want..., WE want... There's an emphasis on the "we" that violates our relationship with God.
"I am an accountant because......" "I am a truck driver because..." "I am a CFO because..." "I am a legal assistant because..."
Answering those questions candidly requires a careful look at our lives and our motivations. It also requires a careful look at how God designed us, where He's at work, and what role He wants us to play in the place where He's working. We have to ask questions like "How does God define success in my life?" and "How much (money, power, security, etc.) is enough?" "How does how He made me fit into the real world of job selection," and even "whether or not to accept a promotion."
You and I choose to be used every day. Sometimes we choose to be used by our jobs, sometimes by other people, but more often we choose to be used by our own wants. It's time we choose to be used by God, in the place where He wants us. For some, that may mean staying right where we are, and merely changing the reason we do what we do. For others, it may mean acknowledging we can't "parallel park" either, and admitting it's time to make more dramatic changes.
Choosing to be used is more than just telling others about Christ, though our souls should long to declare Him. It's also about surrender to Him in every area of life, including our jobs.