My car’s dashboard provides all kinds of indicators pertaining to the car itself and my driving. It provides information about how the car is working and whether there are things that should be addressed. It likes to make sure that I keep the car healthy. It lets me know the direction I’m going and the speed at which I’m traveling.

Dashboards are great.

Pastor Titus Martin and I just finished what you might call a dashboard experience as we participated in a Vocation Infusion Learning Community (VILC). Over the course of the past year, this group of pastors and laity representing 16 congregations from around the U.S. gathered four times to discuss how churches might equip people to live faithfully in the world—transforming their everyday world.

The journey that ensued included a deep exploration of a robust theology of vocation, times of wonderful conversations about how our faith informs the work we do, and the formation of rich friendships. For our congregation, it was an excellent opportunity to take inventory and check the indicators. It was a time for us to pay attention to our “dashboard” in regards to our congregation’s practices, in light of a deep understanding of vocation.

Our journey began in the Washington, D.C., area. Our group embarked on the task of mining the multifaceted topic of vocation and what it could look like to reframe our various perspectives—hopeful for what this might add to the life of our congregations. We wasted no time in diving into discussions about what a more dynamic picture of vocation means in light of the all-encompassing biblical narrative. King Jesus really does rule every inch. Our God really does care deeply about spreadsheets, square feet, ingredients, and third-grade homework. The aspects of our work hold deep significance in God’s kingdom. We wondered aloud what this might look like in daily practice. This was very exciting stuff.

In November a smaller contingent of our group met in New York City to be guests at the Gospel & Culture Conference and spend some time with the wonderful people at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan. This particular trip was one of my personal highlights as we engaged in dialogue about the importance of thriving cities at the epicenter of the Western world. Hurricane Sandy had swept through just five days earlier, leaving her wake of disorder along the upper east coast. This enhanced our experience, however, as we watched neighbors love one another right before our eyes. Hospitality, kindness, and support overflowed.

That Friday afternoon I went for a walk through empty and desolate lower Manhattan, where the power was out. This was an eerily fascinating experience as I found myself thinking it isn’t supposed to be this way—cities should hustle and bustle, they should have energy and excitement about what is happening. It struck me that this was what we were working towards as a learning community. How do we work towards cities that thrive? How do we contribute to the common good of our own cities—from New York to Napa, from Atlanta to Ann Arbor? I wondered how many of our own cities were experiencing their own proverbial power outages?

We had a wonderful time with the staff of Redeemer’s Center for Faith & Work. We heard from some amazing young men and women that participate in their Gotham Fellowship Program. Designed to challenge and support young marketplace leaders, the program helps this community see the importance of their own work and the impact it can have on the city of New York and God’s kingdom. I left energized by what I had heard and excited by the idea of practicing city renewal through vocational stewardship.

After a number of months apart, our learning community reconvened as we all journeyed to Kansas City, Kan. Our wonderful hosts, Christ Community Church, welcomed us with open arms. Pastor Tom Nelson, author of Work Matters, has spent more than two decades serving this congregation. With wisdom and humility, Pastor Nelson has deeply integrated a vision of “common grace for the common good” by helping his members see the importance of each of their contributions as integral to the missio Dei. He cast a vivid picture as he discussed with our group the essential task of embracing the biblical narrative when practicing an integrated vocational framework. He passionately described the need to rethink work as service for the ultimate glory of God. And he so wonderfully described the critical importance of intentionality with our work, because work is indeed formative in our everyday lives.

It was in the midst of Midwest hospitality and famous Kansas City barbecue that Titus and I began to really work out what this robust vision of faith and work might look like on the ground for College Hill Reformed Presbyterian Church. We began to wonder how to best equip our congregation—those from different generations, those who receive paychecks and those who work tirelessly without any remuneration, those who are deeply in love with what they do as well as those who try with all their might to maintain a good attitude on a daily basis at a job they dislike—to thrive in their spheres of influence and see the deep connection of their contribution to God’s kingdom. We also reflected on the particular role that our own body of believers plays in the contribution to the continued restoration of Beaver Falls, Pa.

Our dashboard indicators were certainly flashing helpful information in Kansas City. We began to see more clearly our congregation’s specific needs in regards to vocation infusion. We began to brainstorm ideas that could be put into practice. We began to discuss the need for a comprehensive plan that would strategically lay out our ideas and the different aspects of that plan. We were excited about the direction we were heading.

During our time in Kansas City I began a deep wrestling with a particular tension of our ongoing conversation. I was struck with a more profound sense of the complexity of our task at hand. I found myself wanting clearer answers when it came to struggling through vocational stewardship with the recent college graduate who feels underemployed. I wanted a more satisfactory reply to the wearied soul who continues to look for a job in a struggling economy. What does the “work matters” conversation look like here? I continue to wrestle. I find peace, however, by continually returning to the words of the Apostle Paul, that we only see through the dark glass during the already-but-not-yet. And I find hope in the fact that all things are through Christ and in Christ, and for His ultimate glory.

This past June, our learning community journeyed to sunny Long Beach, Calif., for our fourth and final time together. What we encountered was yet another church body waiting to embrace us and provide us with a wonderful visit. Grace Brethren Church is a light to the community of Long Beach, practicing neighbor love through their various programs and partnerships. Grace’s pastor, Lou Huesmann, shared a fitting word with our group as he spoke about “tenacious hopefulness.” While our group prepared to end this experience together, I thought about the timeliness of this concept. The practice of tenacious hopefulness must be embodied. The fact is that this work is hard and the journey is long. Author James Hunter writes that “If, indeed, there is a hope or an imaginable prospect for human flourishing in the contemporary world, it begins when the Word of shalom becomes flesh in us and is enacted through us toward those with whom we live, in the tasks we are given, and in the spheres of influence in which we operate.” This indeed requires steadfast faithfulness on our part and hope for our communities as we dedicate ourselves to our various tasks and places.

Our group’s time has come to its bittersweet end. This group of particular individuals will likely never be together again, and for that I am sad because of the wisdom, love, and energy that they have engendered. What a feeling it is, however, to have wonderful new friendships scattered throughout the country, and to know that these friends are thoughtfully, diligently, and with tenacious hopefulness seeking the common good in their own congregations and cities.

This experience was also not an end in itself. I see it as a catalyst. It is now time to get to work and put into practice the ideas shared and the strategies drafted.

As I consider the fabric of College Hill Reformed Presbyterian Church, I am excited for the road ahead. Our perspective that all of life is under the kingship of Christ and that work is meant to be done in service for His kingdom and ultimate glory provides a solid foundation to embrace a robust theology of vocation and calling.

God has proven His faithfulness to this congregation for over 100 years. I believe He will continue to do so as we seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and as we continue to heed His call to seek the common good of Beaver Falls and the flourishing of all our various spheres of influence. With great expectation I will echo the words of the psalmist through prayer and song, joyfully exclaiming, “May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands.” Soli Deo gloria!

—Brian Jensen serves as director of student leadership development at Geneva College. He lives in Beaver Falls, Pa., with his wife Sara and their three kids, Toby, Zoe, and Levi. They are members of College Hill RPC.

“Jesus Christ reigns over all, and His kingdom has no end. This great truth injects all of life with a kingdom purpose. God has called us to live all of life in such a way that Christ’s sovereign rule in principle comes to concrete expression in marriage, family, work, culture, government and every other part of life. This learning community has served as an incubator for ideas on how to equip believers to live for this purpose specifically in the places where they work and the cities in which they live. I was inspired, challenged, and sharpened. May His kingdom come.” —Pastor Titus Martin, College Hill (Beaver Falls, Pa.) RPC