Business school is definitely not the easiest place to feel or look like a follower of God. Truthfully, stepping between school and the church, I feel looked down upon because “pursuing a career in finance” doesn’t exactly sound as selfless and Christian-ish as pursing nursing, teaching, ministry, etc. Here’s the paradox that seems to be constantly on my mind lately.

I really do admire people who pursue a career they’ve fallen in love with. When someone overflows with passion for education, the environment, fitness, construction, journalism, anything really – when you can tell when a person’s job tugs on their heart strings. These people carry a type of energy with them that makes me jealous. I hope I’m as in love with my life as these people one day.

The funny thing I’ve seemed to notice about people passionate about their careers is that most that I know aren’t believers. (Unless they’re pursuing a previously listed “Christian-ish” career like ministry, nursing, teaching, etc.) I think the reason for this is perhaps that for a believer, nothing else seems to be worthy of consuming your heart and mind if it doesn’t clearly fit in with a Jesus-collared work force.

However, for believers in the white-collar world – business, law, technology, whatever – career seems to be more routine than passion. The people I meet in my business classes that are in love with their opportunities and enthusiastic about their education are rarely the same people as the business students I see at YoungLife or Church. Perhaps we are consumed by a purpose so eternal that an earthly career blends into a minute part of the picture. Perhaps time spent climbing the ladder seems like time spent sliding down the kingdom ladder at the same time – so we settle for routine work. I’m not exactly down for that.

I think I’ve been in some sort of power struggle for the last year wondering why I’m not more excited about my career like the people around me in class. Maybe a lot of this is because we associate business with earthly desires – greed, money, etc. & so it doesn’t seem “holy” to consume yourself with a career so “far away” from the church.

So, what does that mean for someone passionate about business? What does the church say if math or marketing or accounting was the talent given to you by God?

I suppose I want to improve at being grateful for these gifts & passions – & have a deeper understanding that finance majors and kingdom seekers don’t necessarily have to be separate people. There is equal room to expand the kingdom of God just as well as the education major can.

As this continued to puzzle me, I asked my bible study leader if someone whose talents revolved around statistics and market analysis could possibly have the fullness from their career as a teacher – or if I’m destined to have a pay-the-bills routine for the rest of my life. I’m still digesting her response a bit – but I do know that I found comfort in it – a sense that I am doing something right.

It is imperative that if we are to be kingdom people that we follow the God’s nudge. The pearl of ultimate price is different for each person – the thing that fuels them and gets them out of bed in the morning. Like a pearl – there is mystery inside each one of us. Mystery as to how God will use our gifts and talents to expand the kingdom here on earth. Don’t ignore the thing that you feel drawn to dig into – whatever gives you goosebumps. Perhaps too often we worry about pouring so much Jesus into our souls and our faith becomes to personal that we forget there is a broken world to pour out into.