Work with Purpose Conference | Panel | August 2024
Description
Find encouragement in hearing the inspiring testimonies of Kingdom-minded professionals as they discuss what it looks like to partner with God in your work. Find more about Work with Purpose, here.
first time mind you this is
happening hi I’m Amanda Bolan and I’m
the manager of Kingdom at work and isn’t
it interesting as business
professionals we go in day in and day
out year after year knowing our what
maybe it’s the means of a paycheck to be
able to pay for all the activities our
kids are in maybe it’s as a CEO to run a
business and we forget the why we forget
the purpose of the why so I’ve invited
some friends um and we’re going to talk
about the why and the purpose in their
work so I’m going to have them introduce
themselves to you
Andrew kind of feel like I should be
singing Amazing Grace up here
uh my name is Andrew roach and um I am a
home health physical therapist assistant
and I’ve been doing so for the last 16
years and um I’ve been married to my
beautiful wife Gina roach for 17 years
and I think she looks pretty good in
orange uh although it is burnt orange so
I’m going to have to talk to her about
that
part um and we have three children um 9
11 13 and their names are Olivia Liam
and Colin
I’m Teresa Clark and I am a Financial
Consultant for nonprofits I’ve worked in
the nonprofit um Finance side of the
world for over 25 years and have the
pleasure of owning my own business doing
consulting work now um and I am just
passionate about numbers when I see
numbers they speak to me I see stories I
see what God sees I see things being
possible and if the gift of faith I have
courage to believe many things can be
achieved That Others May think are
impossible and um I’ve been married to
the man of my dreams for 17 years and we
have two children that are ages girls
both girls ages seven and
13 anybody else have a passion for
numbers few of you accountants
yeah and now for the others who are not
passionate about numbers Kayla Barnes
Avid people Enthusiast um recruiter for
beaten boo companies I get the pleasure
of serving our our H our leaders through
hiring and the public through um finding
and acquiring Talent I’ve been with the
company for 14 years now and so um
gotten to be a part of a few different
teams and a few different departments
and have really enjoyed it I came to Le
LEC to go to Texas Tech University we
have any yeah um and here I married a
local at the love of my life obadia 19
years um and then say more fun is coming
we have five children yes I did say five
from ages 9 to 27 and that also makes me
glamma to two perfect grandkids that’s
cool awesome so we’re going to talk
about what work looks like and maybe the
definition of work today the holy spirit
is speaking to you on a shift in your
definition of work and so I want to ask
each of our panel members here when did
your definition of work
change um so um my definitional work
changed about 5 years ago um I was
actually at a workshop not unlike this
one where I met the Lord for the first
time um I met the Holy Spirit I didn’t
even know what that was I just felt this
presence I was very vulnerable I was
very uh open to new ideas and the Lord
just started giving me uh words for
people that were sitting around a table
that we were discussing with not people
I knew but people we had just met and
that was a very powerful and moving
experience that really changed my
perspective on uh life on personal
relationships and also with work and so
I used to be very driven by honestly
money money was my objective so I was
going to do anything that I could do
just to make money um and so even in the
Home Health Arena that’s the way I
started I was trying to crank out as
many patien as uh I could see um because
that meant more money and I forgot about
the human factor that and so when I met
the Lord um uh he reminded me of the
reason why I’m going to go see people is
not for uh the mon the mon monetary
purposes it was for their benefit and he
reminded me that I was there to listen
to people and um and and to see uh how
that changed my work in terms of how
they responded to me um before I met the
Lord it was like I had to beg them to do
the physical therapy that I was asking
them to do at home
and then when I was starting to just
listen and listen to what the Lord was
telling me to to to to go for and to to
listen to uh that the patients were
telling me all of a sudden that they
were much more responsive to what I was
asking them to do so um and that’s been
the last five six years really good I
don’t know if you caught several of
those nuggets in there that Andrew just
said two things that that I know hit me
and something you should ask yourself is
profit more important than people or are
task is more important than people and I
think that probably hits several of us
in ways is our work about getting things
done is it about making money or is it
about stewarding people that God’s
placed in our lives Teresa how has the
definition of work changed for you well
I’d say it began in my 20s I was working
at a CPA firm and was really climbing
the corporate ladder on track to be a
partner and really just about promotions
and achievements and I had a significant
experience with with the Lord I was
actually on a missions trip with a group
of high schoolers and I felt the Lord
really just speak something to my heart
and at that moment things changed where
I didn’t want to pursue success I wanted
to pursue significance and it l led to a
transition in my life I went on staff um
at a ministry here in town a very large
one and I thought that changing my
location was going to change that and
what I realized is it didn’t that the
same Tendencies the same mindsets the
same things that I would have done at
the CPA for I was now doing in the
ministry and it it got me to a place of
of realizing what we talked about today
that work really is worship and I began
to realize wow so when I count a deposit
or when I do a financial cash flow or a
forecast or when I’m dealing with a
legal matter like it’s all sacred like
every one of those things can be sacred
because it’s not about the work that I’m
doing it’s about the knowledge that I
have now that it’s worship that it
really truly is me doing it for the God
who created me and gave me the capacity
to do these things
that I found incredible
fulfillment oh good stuff that’s good
Teresa if you guys didn’t catch that
your title might change your location
might change but if your why isn’t
solidified in the Kingdom none of those
things matter it’s really good Kayla how
about you when did the definition of
work change for
you well it happened a few years ago I
was in my first role at beaten bow homes
I was a warranty coordinator um and that
basically meant I took incoming phone
calls for home buyers and and then I
scheduled and coordinated with our
technicians um it was actually in
something that we call we had um an
internal Ministry team at the time that
would do daily devotionals and they
invited everyone that wanted to come and
I joined and I’m sure it was wonderful
but I couldn’t um I couldn’t focus the
whole time because I felt the Lord
speaking to me the entire time and I was
petrified and just in fear to speak out
and to say what was on my heart and what
I felt like the Lord was showing me I I
felt like I I have a background of being
grown up in the church and I’ve known
that my spiritual gifting was the gift
of healing and to pray for people when I
felt they needed healing and there was
this gentleman I was sitting in the back
what I thought was hidden and I could
see him and I felt like I needed to pray
for him he needed healing but I was too
scared to say a word I
thought this is a business number one
I’m not at church this is a business I
don’t know that they let you do that um
two we couldn’t be more opposites and
what if he doesn’t need healing what if
what if and um I just so happened as
they were closing up from the devotional
and I shared with one team member
there and in that moment she took my
hand she walked me confidently to that
accounting manager’s office and said and
introduced me and said this lady has a
word of healing for you would you like
it in that
moment he said yes and I it turns out he
allowed me to pray over him and his he
had a son who needed healing and had
that not transp well it was just an eye
opening for me that I could be the same
person at work that I could was allowed
to be at church or anywhere else
wow that’s powerful hey I don’t know if
you guys knew we’re all in full-time
Ministry if you didn’t know that you get
the opportunity to do those things if
you just pause and listen to the Lord so
my next question is how has your purpose
in your work how has that changed um now
that you have this why and how has that
impacted others around you
Andrew uh so for me the it’s just that
person relationship I’m having with the
patients that I’m seeing um you know
it’s it’s it’s a lot more about just
listening once again and understanding
what their needs are it’s not just the
physical aspect of it but the spiritual
aspect of it and especially if they’re
open to it um um I once saw a patient um
he lived out in the middle of nowhere so
it took me about 30 minutes to get to
his house and he had been struggling a
lot um he was actually very independent
his whole life he was 93 I I think years
old and he was doing everything he was
working on the ranch and doing all the
things that he was needing to do and all
of a sudden it just fell off a cliff and
it just wrecked his world and he didn’t
have a lot of close family that was real
close by and so he was literally stuck
in a chair all day long so the only time
that he ever got to get out of the chair
was for me to get him up and take him to
the bedside commode and that was it so
you have to think about his mindset and
he was just really down and I remember
I’d seen him for several weeks and um we
weren’t honestly making a ton of
progress and it was a little
discouraging for me and I’m sure it was
really discouraging for him um but I
remember I was just listening to a
sermon on the way to his house and I
actually stopped about a quarter mile
from his house and and I I just stopped
on the side of the road and I just said
Lord I’m not too sure what to do here to
help him and I just remember the Lord
just succinctly saying you know if he
asked for my name if he asked me by name
then you need to pray for him and I and
I said okay I was like all right um I’ll
pray for him if he asks but I’m not
going to initiate so I go to his home
and I I work with him and we get to the
bedside commode and um we get him back
and we do our
exercises and um I tell him the next
time I’m going to come and see him and
um say our goodbyes I’m getting ready to
walk out the door and he just looks at
me and or says to me um I think God has
forgotten about
me and that to stop me in my tracks I
was literally opening the door and I
turned around and I said he has not
forgotten about you because he told me
if you asked for for him by his name
that I was going to pray for
you and that honestly meant more to him
than anything I did physically with him
uh just sat and prayed with him and you
know his his demeanor and every
everything after that just changed even
for the several weeks after that that I
saw on birth therapy so gosh that’s
powerful thanks for sharing that Teresa
I really relate I think it’s impacted
how I serve others uh that I see myself
now in a capacity that just to come
along side of the work that God’s doing
and in other Ministries and other
nonprofits and to be able to Resource
them in a way that those ripples go out
so much further than what I could have
ever imagined doing if my own strength
uh and then I’d say it affects my family
I I really believe that um when we’re
working in the kingdom of God and we’re
working with this mindset that we don’t
work in such a way that we sacrifice our
families and so the lifegiving season
that I’m in for my family and my role as
a mom and as a daughter I have aging
parents um as a wife as a sister has
been incredibly rewarding and then I
would also and that’s not because of a
change and necessarily it’s because of a
mindset change when you’re not striving
you’re not working so hard that you’re
Bur burning yourself out that you have
nothing to give others and the last
impact I’d say is it has on my team as I
started to grow my business and hire
team members it’s creating a culture
that is the kind of culture people want
to work in and so it’s it’s inspiring to
know that I can create a place for
people like that Teresa what are some
safeguards that people can put up in
order to one okay Lord I want to break
this mindset of striving I want to break
this mindset of always having to
accomplish
listen accomplishing isn’t bad but it’s
if you’re at the center of it and not
the
Lord how would you say that that you
were able to put safeguards around that
to make sure your family gets the best
and your work gets the best like how do
you do that um I think clear
expectations are important especially
when you’re working for someone else I
think a lot of times in that environment
you take on things that others aren’t
really asking you to do you just think
that they are so in my case it’s my
client I can take that on as though I’ve
got to work this weekend I’ve got to
achieve this project I’ve got to
accomplish this thing and if I go back
instead with expectation checkin to my
clients to say hey when would you need
that buy and sometimes they’ve said
things that I can’t meet and I’m able to
say um I’m taking a trip with my family
this weekend or I’ve committed to
something and I’m not able to deliver
that until is that okay and I’ll tell
you what every single time it seems to
work because I’m a hard worker like I
pick up the stick pretty hard on myself
like no one else really needs to do it
for me so I’ve had to learn how to put
my my own like work hard stick down and
actually check in with that um and I’ve
given my family permission I mean we
agreed that this transition in my life
at this season to the business ownership
was going to make certain things a
priority for us it was picking my kids
up from school every day and so you know
if I’m not doing that then my family’s
there to say like Mom where are you at
why aren’t you there that’s something
you told me you were going to give me
with this change and so it’s a sweet
season and it’s pretty short is what I’m
learning these kids are gone pretty fast
right anybody of kids that hold you
accountable Kayla um how would you say
your work is different now that you have
your why and your purpose and how has it
impacted
others I would say for me I’ve learned
to be more intentional with the moments
that I have to be a present when I’m
listening I do a lot of active listening
a lot of conversations um in recruiting
people that I don’t I may not even know
who I’m going to talk to next week um
and it’s not written yet and so just
being ready for those conversations and
being present and being um so many times
I can be a Beacon of Hope for somebody
of truth of encouragement um grounding
and and so that’s really encouraging for
me um so many stories one recently I
just to share that the moments that
really just light me up for what I do um
there was a call I I took I anticipated
that it was an application problem um
for a sales position I took the call and
I quickly realized this is not a
technical issue this is a life issue
this lady is going through a struggle in
life a change in life her her reason for
looking for a job she had recently um
lost her fiance um he had passed away
she had recent financial problems she
was looking for work needed hard she
needed to be hard yesterday and in that
moment I felt her heart and I got quiet
and I
said I’m not going to be able to get you
a job
yesterday if I’m honest I don’t even
know if I can give you a job at
all and it got real quiet and I felt
like I heard the Lord say what if what
if you prayed for and I took a big
breath and I said I know this is really
unorthodox for a recruiter to
do but I know a god that can change your
life and your circumstance can I pray
for you and an awkward
silence and she said I would love
nothing more than that and so in that
moment I got to encourage her I got to
speak life over her it didn’t cost me
anything but a little bit of
time and then a week or so later she
called to give me an update on
interviewing and just to let me know
that God had intervened and done some
miraculous things in her life wow isn’t
it interesting that so many of us we ask
God for miracles we pray for
breakthroughs and it usually comes in
ways that we don’t expect but he wants
to partner with us I know Andrew told us
a story um about a miracle that happened
in the physical therapy world that all
three of us were like wow what a story
would you share
that um so uh this is early on in my
faith Journey was probably maybe 6
months after um I was seeing a patient
and once again situation was not very
bright um she hadn’t walked in months
she had been in impatient therapy for
several months and they weren’t able to
get her up and walk her and um I had
reached that point as well it’s been two
or three weeks of working with her and I
really wasn’t sure what to do all my
training and the schooling and
everything I did those things and
attempted them um I had her standing at
the sink I was blocking her knees with
the cupboards and holding her up and she
just flat out just could not stand and I
had to make the decision or I help make
the decision that is in terms of are we
going to try and reow or are we going to
discharge this patient and I wasn’t
really certain and so I stopped the
truck in front of the house and before I
I walked inside um I just stopped and I
asked the Lord and I said Lord I just
I’m not sure what to do with this um I
just you know I’ve done everything i’ I
could I think in terms of what we should
do and it’s just not
working and then the Lord just said put
the walker in front of her
and going through school I’m like that’s
not going to work uh I’ve tried
everything I have to hold her up like
that’s not going to work and I kept
arguing and the Lord just kept on saying
put the walker in front of her so I’m
like okay Lord we’ll just see how this
goes and so I walk in I talk to the
husband and I just said hey look uh
we’ve tried all this other stuff let’s
just try this and if it doesn’t work
it’s it’s no big deal but we’re going to
try
so I put the walker in front of her and
the husband looked at me like I was
crazy too trying to do it and she stood
up and she walked about 15
ft and I couldn’t believe it he couldn’t
believe it she couldn’t believe it
because she hadn’t walked in six months
and that just changes your respect
perspective on your purpose on what
you’re there
for hey y’all should ask God for help at
work
right hey I know you know your
what but do you know your why so just
like we’ve done after each of our talks
um I want to pull up some reflection
questions and I want to give you a few
minutes to answer
these and those of you that are
processors Carrie said this earlier you
are going to be emailed these questions