By Daniel Lim, Lighthouse (Working adults community)
“If the world hates you, remember that it hated me before you. If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you do not belong to the world, because my choice withdrew you from the word, therefore the world hates you.” Jn 15:18-19. In my journey, I held on to this bible verse close to my heart knowing that being different is not foolish because by choosing to be a fool for Christ, I can live out my faith in freedom to bring glory to His name. Will you choose the Lord today?
Hello! I am Daniel and I’m currently working in the banking industry for close to 2 years now. My years of formation being in parish community, OYP community during university days and now working adult community has helped to anchor my faith and molded me as an intentional disciple of Christ. Back then after graduation, like all other fresh graduates, I was so excited to begin working life. Endless assignments and studying in school had finally ended and the beginning of tasting “freedom” as a working adult was so exciting. Ambitions and pride of securing my first job in a popular graduate program also began to cloud my own vision of what God really wanted me to pursue as a working adult.
I began working with the secular mindset of a young adult; I held dreams of travelling around and desired to outperform peers in my work. I desired the sense of recognition and the ability to earn and spend on things that I want without relying on anyone. In my mind, I was prepared to fight and hustle my life away, keeping Jesus just a little within my sight.
As I slowly eased into the banking industry, I became surrounded by very goal-driven people who also enjoyed drinking and ‘chilling’ after work, especially on Friday nights. I was often invited by colleagues to join them for a quick pint after work or to party with them. As a newbie, I was torn but eventually succumbed to temptation and went with the flow out of my fear of missing out and my desire to fit in. Initially, I viewed the time of drinking with colleagues simply as a form of relaxation and bonding, but soon realised that the conversations we had over drinks were not life-giving; often involving objectification of women as well as gossip. Getting high, drunk and wasted also became a common phenomenon. I too, found myself losing my capacity for self-control and eventually drank till I puked for the first time in my life. The experience was distasteful and was a wakeup call for me.
I began to see my foolishness in the decisions I was making for my life – that I was in fact drifting further away from the commitment that I had made to remain rooted in Christ in the working world. With much encouragement from my community, God re-ignited my desire to be obedient to Him – to say “Yes” only to things that are helpful, and not to act out of fear or go with the flow with others. It was difficult as I had to intentionally choose the Lord in every situation. I had to say “No” to social drinking after work on Fridays as those were not helpful for me, as well as to say ‘No’ to becoming a slave to my work. Instead, I put in place boundaries for myself and committed to being present for community sessions on Friday nights. Each ‘No’ was definitely difficult because I also had to die to myself and the desires of wanting to fit in. Thankfully, the Holy Spirit guided me to Jesus who constantly held me accountable to my community. I now claim the truth that I have received much more joy from spending time with Christ and my community on Friday nights, than any things of this world. The like-minded brothers and sisters-in-Christ in community who also chose to follow the Lord has been a safe space for me to live out my faith more actively as follower of Christ.
Throughout the past 2 years, I have been constantly tempted by the world; to climb the corporate ladder and to go all out so as to be recognized and affirmed for my achievements. While I recognize that my desire and ambition for success are still present, my conscious effort to choose Jesus over everything else has purified all my intentions. Now, I hold on to the truth that the riches of the world will fade, and that there is no other boss in this world other than our Lord Jesus Christ. This gave me hope and has allowed me to see the intangible reward of following the Lord and being the face of Christ to others.
“If the world hates you, remember that it hated me before you. If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you do not belong to the world, because my choice withdrew you from the word, therefore the world hates you.” Jn 15:18-19. In my journey, I held on to this bible verse close to my heart knowing that being different is not foolish because by choosing to be a fool for Christ, I can live out my faith in freedom to bring glory to His name. Will you choose the Lord today?
