Discipleship for working life
Cross-Current
Witness at Work
We think of Christian witness being like a signpost pointing others to Jesus. To work well, a signpost needs to have clear words pointing in the right direction. These words need to be held up by a structure with integrity so they can be clearly seen. And the structure needs a rock solid foundation.
In 1 Peter we are told to “always be ready to give a reason for the hope we have”, but this comes after Peter has already told followers of Jesus to live such good lives that non-believers will glorify God! Words, supported by structure.
Throughout the whole letter it is Peter’s assertion about the work of God through Jesus to reconcile us with God, that gives rock solid foundation.
Worldview and Character
In his book Popologetics, Ted Turnau explains that if our lives can be likened to a tree, then the fruit of our tree should reflect the seed that was planted for the tree to grow. If the fruit of our lives are the things we say and do (that make up our whole-life-witness) then these should surely always reflect our worldview or unshakable beliefs.
Where there is contradiction between what we know to be true as Christians and the way we behave when we’re at work, this is because our lives are also shaped by the culture that we live and work in. Sadly it is completely possible to be a person of enormous personal integrity in personal life, who is also obsessed by greed or corruption in work.
Character is the key to consistency, allowing us, by the Spirit’s help, to be Christ-like in every area of life… even when nobody is watching.
What is Cross-Current?
Cross-Current is a training programme to nurture Christ-like character at work as a foundation for whole-life witness.
It is designed to be taught by you, wherever you are. Either via your church or IFES movements, or else with a group of like-minded friends. We can help you help those around you.
Join us this November in Alicante, Spain to find out how you can be involved.
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We flourish when our identity in Christ is our identity at work.
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Six Core Modules
Module 1 - Theology of Work: Service
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Starting with God’s big act of work, Creation, we ask what might it mean for us to be made in the image and likeness of the Creator God?
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Two themes emerge, creativity and responsibility. How can we learn to serve our Creator in our work with the opportunities and gifts He has given us?
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I need to know why I go to work. Is it just something I do to pay the bills or is it something I do for the glory of God?
Module 2 - Theology of Relationships: Love
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Again we begin with biblical worldview to see that our relationally is part of what it means to bear God’s image. Then we read 1 Peter to see how this translates into life.
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Love, Trust, Dependence. These define the relationships for which we are created, and for which we are redeemed in Christ.
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How good are my relationships at work? What is the culture like at work? What would it look like if I could learn to love colleagues, clients, even bosses, with Jesus’ love?
Module 3 - Theology of Integrity: Trust
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How sin corrupts who we are created to be, and how Jesus redeems us, restores us and reconciles us to God. And how this changes everything.
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Love always has an ethical dimension, and sin always violates this - both our relationship to the Father and our relationships with each other. What does it mean for us to “die to sin and live for righteousness”?
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Again we need to read the culture of our workplace, and assess whether we are living by biblical imperatives or just following the crowd. Is change possible?
Module 4 - Theology of Wealth: Generosity
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“The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it.” We examine the relationship between the people of God and wealth given by God for their blessing.
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Idolatry begins when we start to chase after the blessing instead of the one who blesses.
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Generosity is God’s way to involve us in His work of blessing others, and it allows us to exercise the ‘muscle of trust’ we have in His goodness.
Module 5 - Theology of Ambition: Humility
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Focus on Philippians, and Paul’s burning ambition for the glory of God. How does this translate into our lives and work?
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Real humility comes not from self-abasement but from real worship of the Triune God. When we see how great He is we can rejoice in who He made us to be!
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Christians can be excited, they can plan, they can have dreams, they can be ambitious. But always the big question is what we are ambitious for.
Module 6 - Theology of Blessing: Beneficial Purpose
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What does it mean to be “in Christ” in the world? In Ephesians we find two expressions of this - we are part of the church, and we are part of society - living as light.
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What were we created for? What is God’s purpose for our lives? How can we live to the greatest potential to bless others and glorify God?
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How can we avoid living ‘treadmill’ lives? Where are the places and the relationships where we can be distinctive? How can all aspects of our lives draw others to Jesus?
Cross-Current is made up of six core modules, each of which examines a different aspect of Christ-like character as a dimension of our whole-life-witness at work.
Each module combines deep Bible study with a framework for personal assessment, an agenda for change, and peer-mentoring.
We want to help you change to become the person Jesus wants you to be, when you go to work.
Three ways to run a Cross-Current Group
1 module per residential weekend
This is the optimum if your group can manage. Start on Friday evening after work, and end Sunday after lunch. This provides time for deep Bible study and personal reflection, as well as for relaxation and community building over meals and in the evening.
With 6 modules in the curriculum, we recommend you spread the 6 weekends over 2-3 years.
Our residential Cross-Current groups have retained 90% of members over a 3 year span.
1 module over 2 Saturdays
Great if you want to run a group at church or with people who live close by.
This also gives a good amount of time to study Bible texts and apply them to your own real-life circumstances.
We recommend you run 2-3 modules per year — maybe one in the autumn and one in the spring — with the two Saturdays set 2-3 weeks apart, so that there is time for participants to put into practice what they’ve learned.
1 module over 7 evenings
Weekends can be tough, and evenings may work better for you. The curriculum can be taught in person over 7 evenings spaced out over a few months. You may want to use one module for a Bible study group.
During COVID times we’ve had groups start in Portugal and Canada, meeting online for 90 minutes once a week. While it’s always best to meet in person, sometimes circumstances don’t allow for that.
Cross-Current Magazine
Our dedicated Cross-Current website is stacked with resources for helping us engage our Christian minds with all aspects of contemporary work and culture.
Key distinctives of Cross-Current
Biblical worldview as a foundation for character
We dig deep into the Bible. We link what we learn from biblical worldview about the nature of God and his plans for his Creation (including us) with the formation of Christlike character as a foundation for a life of witness at work.
Intergenerational role models
Wherever possible we learn wisdom from one generation to another, hearing practical advice on distinctive living for Jesus at work from those who have already tried, and occasionally succeeded!
Learning communities
Cross-Current groups are learning communities of 12-16 people who travel together through a learning experience that is typically spread over 2-3 years. This community and timespan gives us time to form trusting relationships, and time to try to change who we are at work with the support of others.