Transforming Work by Simon Flinders and Paul Grimmond

It’s easy to feel weary thinking about all the work we need to get done, isn’t it? Whether it’s our 9-5, the endless list of jobs at home, or the ministry we do for church, there is so much to do! We can find ourselves feeling resentful or frustrated. But on the other hand, sometimes we are tempted to find our meaning and life fulfillment through work. 

As I read Transforming Work by Simon Flinders and Paul Grimmond, I’ve been reminded that those challenges are answered in the Bible - both the goodness of work and its frustration since the Fall. Transforming Work reorientates us, beginning with the big picture of God as a worker and us as his image bearers. Flinders and Grimmond help us to stick with the Bible’s questions about work or careers, rather than our own. The rest of the book addresses the nature and purpose of work, the relationship between work and rest, how we work for and with others and how we work at church. Each chapter ends with a prayer, asking for God’s help in that particular area. Work (both paid and unpaid) takes so much of our time. It was a helpful reminder to be ‘Godward’ in my work and in my thinking about work. 

I’d recommend it to everyone who works (both paid and unpaid, in the workplace or at home) but specifically to those who feel the frustration of the daily grind, or who are tempted to find their significance in their paid employment. It is a good book to read with a friend or mentor to discuss the implications for how we work well in our world.

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Reviewed by Karen Lawson-Smith

Karen serves with the saints in South West Sydney. This year Karen helped write some of the pre-conference resources for EQUIP.