Integrating Work into Faith

My Journey to the “Why” of Work: Understanding the Intersection of Faith and Work (Paul Michalski – 1/24/20 – NCS New Canaan)

January 24, 2020 by NCS New Canaan Leave a Comment

Paul Michalski shares the seven stages of his 50-year journey in understanding the intersection of faith and work–understanding the “Why” of work. From Stage 1 of “Shallow Faith Plus Dreams” (knowing at 8 years old that he wanted to be a lawyer and being unable at 13 to reconcile the prophetic utterance by a Catholic bishop that he would “be a priest one day”) to Stage 7 of “Living My Why” through a new venture called Integrous that provides integrity advice and legal counsel to leaders serious about faith/work integration. In between, he describes stages called “Living My Dream”, “Hit by a Sledge Hammer”, “Clueless”, “Into the Wilderness” and “Bringing Faith and Work Together”.

Paul explains how it took a crisis in his marriage 2003 to awaken his faith and an Abrahamic moment in 2009 to begin a 10-year wilderness journey that including exploring identity and the intersection of faith and work.

Paul describes how he came to his personal mission (“to redeem work through the impartation of wisdom, spotlighting God’s truth and connecting its meaning to organizational cultures and practices”) and how that led to the mission of Integrous and development of the concept of “Integriosity”^®. He also explains what he believes to be the three divine purposes of work and business (Humanize People, Beautify the World and Glorify God), the four steps in the process of Integriosity (Renew, Re-Imagine, Re-Align and Restore) and the four key “mind shifts” necessary for true faith/work integration.

Paul ends by sharing 18 lessons he has learned along the journey.

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Click the link below for a PDF of Paul’s slide presentation

http://assets.newcanaansociety.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2020/01/24123605/My-Journey-to-the-Why-of-Work-NCS-New-Canaan-1-24-20pdf.pdf

Click the link below for a PDF of the chapter “God and Marriage” from the book Miracles by Eric Metaxas.

http://assets.newcanaansociety.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2018/04/22175510/GOD-AND-MARRIAGE.pdf

How Did a Kid from Stamford Get To Be Standing Here? (Chief Don Anderson – 12/6/19 – NCS New Canaan)

December 6, 2019 by NCS New Canaan Leave a Comment

Don Anderson, the newly commissioned 11th Chief of the Darien Police Department, shares the journey that took him from a young boy growing up in Stamford as the son of a policeman and the grandson of a preacher to Chief of Police for the Town of Darien. With tremendous humility and authenticity, Chief Anderson shares the details of an horrific evening when the exemplary service of a New York State Trooper inspired him to pursue law enforcement.

Chief Anderson talks about the importance of faith in his family when he was young, as well as how his faith has played a role during his police career. He also details his police career, which began with long hours “walking the beat” on lonely streets with little prospect of promotion. Through perseverance and humility, he rose through the ranks to take the position that his father held as the 7th Chief of the Darien Police Department.

This recording includes an eye-opening introduction by John Revell (founder of Life Line Chaplaincy, Chaplain for the Stamford Police Department, Chaplain for the Connecticut State Police), as well as the Q&A session following Chief Anderson’s talk. Perhaps the most dramatic example of how faith has impacted Chief Anderson’s work as an officer is shared in the Q&A–so keep listening!

12 Ways To Make Work a Prayer

September 27, 2019 by NCS New Canaan Leave a Comment

As a senior partner in a global consulting firm and a deacon in the Catholic Church, Gauthier Vincent is uniquely positioned to contemplate the intersections and integration of faith and work. He shares 12 ways he has found to ground his work in his faith, and explains how he applies these practically on a daily basis in his own life.

Embrace the purpose of your work (remember all the people whose welfare our work contributes to)
Realize your freedom (just follow Christ)
Ideas 1 and 2 are about growing in gratitude and in spiritual freedom
Practice a life of virtues at work (even work becomes a good habit, i.e., virtue and a school of selflessness)
Do it right and make it beautiful (beauty always leads to contemplation)
Always be cheerful (joy calls on Joy)
Live the Gospel literally whenever you can (as you take the last seat and sub-optimize your work, you trust in the Lord)
Welcome Christ in everyone (look at the Christ image in all, from the CEO to the janitor)
Ideas 3-7 are about living the right way, as a child of God
Cultivate the Presence of God during the day (turn your heart to the Lord with ejaculatory prayers, sweet words, e.g., as your watch beeps every hour)
Practice the Examen (reflect on your day and look for how the Lord touched you through consolations and desolations)
Begin and end your day in a contemplative mood (begin with a time for Scripture and Silence and the Silent Presence will stay with you during the day)
Let the cross transform you (above age 25 one learns essentially through failures and suffering; there the Lord comes closer)
Love the world and everyone in it (if you don’t work with love you deprive your co-workers, family, clients, etc.. of the real value of your work, i.e., the love with which you work)
Ideas 8-12 are about the mystical life at work, the life of union with the Beloved

A Musical Path to Spaceless Embrace (Dan Haseltine – 4/26/19 – NCS New Canaan)

April 26, 2019 by NCS New Canaan Leave a Comment

Dan Haseltine tells us that a songwriter’s job is to describe the world as it is and as it it could be, and he presents his vision of both.

Starting with a painfully vulnerable description of his childhood, Haseltine explains how a dysfunctional and volatile family life pushed him to music, and how music led him to mission. He transparently shares the generational brokenness that resulted in him growing up without access to a father, and then reveals how watching the Live Aid concert in 1985 transformed his understanding of rock and roll and permanently fused in his mind “music” and “mission”.

After describing the unlikely genesis of Jars of Clay at a small college in southern Illinois, Haseltine explains how the band was led to use its platform of musical success to embrace mission by starting the charity Blood:Water.

In telling this story, Haseltine reveals two lessons he has learned about humanity. First, that human beings often try to control or destroy things we do not understand, and second, that we long for “spaceless embrace” with each other but continually drive wedges between ourselves. Haseltine then offers his vision of the world “as it could be”.

Building a Faith-Based Company (Bill Blezard – 5/4/18 – NCS New Canaan)

May 5, 2018 by NCS New Canaan Leave a Comment

Bill Blezard shares the extraordinary faith journey that ultimately led to the founding, growth and success of Packaging Technology Group, Inc., a “Kingdom” class developer of thermally engineered, transport packaging solutions for the biotech and biopharmaceutical industries. PTG is a Christian faith-based company with its core values centered on faith, relationships, courage, and creativity.

In addition to recounting highlights of his personal life story, challenges and faith walk, Blezard describes the numerous acts of faith and obedience and the miraculous events that allowed PTG to achieve profitability in its first year of operations, exceeding revenue projections by nearly 1000%. He also shares how PTG’s faith-based culture serves, and has opened doors to prayer and transformation in, PTG’s employees, suppliers and customers.

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