My first manager fired me four months after hiring me. I’m pretty sure it was actually his fault but let me explain…
I began applying for jobs when I was 16. After an awful interview at the local library, I landed my dream job: the Barnes and Noble music department. It was summertime and the store was new. I spent three weeks stocking thousands of CDs, stopping to take note of bands that interested me so I could listen to their music after hours. I found dozens of indie gems. Those hidden treasures became my high school soundtrack. And I loved my part-time job.
Eventually, the store opened. I mastered the register and learned to unwrap a CD one-handed in less than a minute. But then school started, and the other shoe dropped. My manager kept scheduling me during school hours. I explained to him that I loved B&N, but I couldn’t work between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. And he fired me over the phone for truancy.
I don’t remember caring much. Even if I enjoyed the work, it was just a part-time gig. I wasn’t going to sacrifice my long-term collegial and professional goals to alphabetize discs.
But as I’ve reflected on that story as an adult, I’ve wondered what happens when we make the opposite error?
Are You a Part-Time Christian?
After years in ministry, I’ve seen countless people catch fire for God. They’re like teenage me, uncovering new gems in God’s word every time they read it. Experiencing God in worship. Sharing about their faith with friends.
But here’s the thing about fires: sometimes the brightest burn the fastest. Eventually, the magic wears off and every new Christian is faced with a choice: will I see following Jesus as my full-time focus or a part-time side hustle?
It’s easy to pick option number two. Eventually, faith becomes a Sunday morning thing (plus, maybe, a mid-week small group) that you think about once a week, but that matters little Monday through Saturday.
On Sunday, we’re praising Jesus. On Monday, we’re gossiping about a manager. On Sunday, we’re nodding along with the sermon. On Tuesday, we’re nodding along with crowd. On Sunday, we’re partaking in the bread and wine. On Wednesday, we’re getting toasted.
Of course, no one is perfect. But I’m not talking about living a perfect life. I’m simply asking whether you view apprenticeship to Jesus as a weekend gig or as a whole-life vocation.
Why We Fall for Part-Time Christianity
I’ve gone through times in my life where my faith became a part-time gig. And it’s happened primarily for one of two reasons:
1. Falling captive to the world
In his parable of the four soils, Jesus describes people who hear the gospel but have different reactions to the message. Two of the seeds grow but die. One because it has no root and the other because it’s choked out by weeds and thorns. Jesus explains,
“…since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19 but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.” (Mark 4:17-19)
He's telling us the world gets us in two ways. First, it will make us suffer for our faith. When following Jesus costs you reputation, opportunity, or relational capital, the easiest solution is to water it down and push it to the back burner. Second, the world will distract and tempt us. We become part-time Christians because it feels like a middle road: a little of the Jesus we love and little of the sin we love. God gets one day, and my desires get the rest.
2. Falling captive to the lie of the sacred/secular split
This one is a bit more complicated. Depending on your background, you may have been taught—or simply caught—the idea that the world can be divided into “Sacred” things/jobs (prayer, worship, ministry, pastoring, Bible study) and “Secular” things/jobs (eating, working, socializing, entertainment, art). As a result, we think that “full-time Christianity” is becoming a church staff member and spending your entire day in prayer, Bible study, or conversations about Jesus.
So if you (like the vast majority of people who’ve followed Jesus throughout history) work an ordinary job and don’t lead Bible studies professionally… then you eventually settle for the lie that part-time Christianity is your lot in life.
The problem with this view is that it’s a lie. The Bible doesn’t divide the world this way. In fact, God calls the whole of creation (including all the so-called secular things we do, like eating, playing, and working) very good.
This means that full-time Christianity isn’t getting a job in ministry, it’s giving the whole of your life to God in all circumstances. As Paul wrote, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31).
Embracing a “Not Just Sunday” Faith
At The Crossing, we’ve always believed that Jesus claims every square inch of creation and every square inch of our lives. Not because he’s a control freak, but because he loves us and knows that the greatest joy to be found in life is serving him in all of life—not just on Sundays!
To that end, Keith and I are launching a new podcast called Not Just Sunday, where we’ll explore how to quit part-time Christianity and bring Jesus into every dimension of your life. As pastors, we know how hard it can be to live this way, which is why we wanted to create a digital classroom of sorts, where we could process how this works together. We’ll eventually cover an incredibly wide range of topics, but that’s only because we believe that the breadth of Jesus’s goodness knows no bounds.
So, if you’re reading this post and find yourself longing for something more in your faith, then I encourage you to join us on this journey and start listening to Not Just Sunday, available wherever you listen to podcasts.
