Yesterday I taught a class. One man in the class was well groomed and polite; obviously a company manager. On a break, he told me his business was slow, so he was looking for a job, just a job. He was tired of losing money with his business, so he closed it down and put all his employees out of work.

I train truck drivers.

That man is at a very low point in his career, and I hope he climbs out and finds more success and satisfaction. If you are wondering, I am not longer a career climber. I am semi-retired and I work as a contractor helping other people with their work, and I really enjoy what I do.

In the last few weeks, I learned how to find a satisfying career, and I know this will work for everyone, including you.

Lesson 1)

I visited my father because about a week ago I think God spoke to me. I am a Christian, and I expect this. The sensation reminded me that my Dad might need a jacket. I had some free time, so I went to Costco and discovered some nice men’s jackets; on sale. I guessed at Dad’s size and drove across town to his nursing home, and there he was, working on a puzzle. He is 92, and healthy, except for his dementia.

He does not know who I am.

We talked for a while, but he really wanted to get back to that puzzle. The jacket fit nicely and he like it so much that he kept it on when he worked on the puzzle.

Lesson 2)

I visited my son, and his wife and their two baby girls. This week I was alone and batching it, and I was bored working at home. On Monday I heard that voice again and it said “visit your son.” He was a field manager with a stressful job, and recently he lost that job. His wife is working and he is at home with the little girls while he searches for a new job. I think they are doing well in his career transition.

They live about two hours away and I drove to see them. We had a happy afternoon, and now I have a new name “Ghagha.” I can’t pronounce it either, but the baby is the opposite of my Dad, she is beginning to understand. There is a strange man in her life who brings coloring books and he must have a name.

Lesson 3)

I taught a class on Saturday and met the man who had closed his company.

Lesson 4)

I went to church today and the preacher said something like “You will be surprised how fast God will make you fruitful.” ‘Make a difference’ is the same as the sermon words ‘be fruitful.’

And here is the lesson; You have one life, with a limited span of days, and you shouldn’t waste any of it. While you are chasing after an illusive big fat paycheck, you should be fruitful and productive, or you should make a difference. Pick one.

Every man who respects the Bible should know the last verse of the Old Testament: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” (Malachi 4: 5 and 6)

Mothers are always close, but fathers and sons can drift away. If we do not obey that voice and step up, the world is cursed. That was my difference this week.

So where is the money in this career? Paul the Apostle had a brilliant career as a lawyer, and lost it all because he became a Christian. Then he started again and wrote about half of the New Testament, and moved the religion of Jesus into the whole world and radically changed the history of the world.

That is a career.

But do you know about his other career? When the money ran out, he went to the local marketplace and sat on the ground to sew pieces of fabric. He worked at his trade of tent maker when the bills piled up.

Christians today would not be here if he didn’t do that.

So how do you pay the bills, and how do you make a difference? Sometimes that question has two answers. Your life is so much bigger than a paycheck.

But whatever was an asset to me, I count as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things as loss compared to the surpassing excellence of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God on the basis of faith. (Philippians 3: 7 , 8, 9)

More in this series:

• Careers for Christians: Where do we start?
• Careers for Christians: Good Without God