Merging faith and business into a singular focus 

In Edmond, there is ample opportunity to explore faith and business concurrently, but does it happen enough?

Our community boasts numerous places of worship. Depending on your search criteria, Edmond is home to over 120 churches, a number that swells when considering nearby areas like NW OKC, Logan County, and Luther. This highlights the deep-rooted significance of faith in our community, leading some to label the OKC metro as the “buckle of the Bible Belt.”

Simultaneously, Edmond is a bustling hub for commerce with hundreds of businesses and thousands of professionals. As residents, we work, live, and invite others to do business here, creating and sharing values. The reality is that work, however we define it, dominates our lives in time and attention.

Given the prominence of both faith and work in our lives, one might assume these two realms seamlessly converge. Yet, often, they don’t. We tend to confine our faith to Sundays or morning devotions. As the clock strikes 8 a.m., work takes the forefront, relegating faith to the background. 

Let me challenge you to keep faith in the foreground during your work day.

There’s no need to segregate our lives, missing out on the symbiotic relationship between faith and work. Imagine the difference if we recognized how God could utilize us in our professions or pondered the impact of our business on our faith communities.

Integrating faith and work is a commendable aspiration, but it’s challenging. Here are five practical steps to help bridge this gap:

1. Integrate your Calendars: Add your church activities to your work calendar. Anticipating a Bible Study or Sunday worship during your work week can help maintain a faith-oriented perspective.

2. Assess Your Values: Re-evaluate your business and personal values. Do they highlight your faith? Consider adjustments to ensure alignment across all facets of your life.

3. Pray: Incorporate your work into your prayers. Whether general or specific, this act can offer clarity and guidance.

4. Start a Conversation: Engage coworkers by inquiring about their places of worship or their faith traditions.

5. Remind Yourself of Scripture: Use the Bible verse from Sunday in your daily devotions. Reflect on its relevance to your work.

It’s sometimes convenient to separate our work, home, and church lives into separate tracks that we jump on and off, depending on where we are or what group we are with. I don’t believe this is how we should live. Try something small this week to incorporate different aspects of your life together into a single track. I would love to help you overcome challenges or chat about how you incorporate work and faith. Reach out to me at philk@edmondbusiness.com.