ASHEVILLE, N.C. (BP)–A.R. Bernard, senior pastor of Christian Cultural Center of Brooklyn, N.Y., said he is a product of workplace ministry.
Bernard was an operations specialist at a New York bank for more than 10 years when a lady in his office shared Christ with him. Bernard was exhausted from exploring a plethora of religions, including Islam and Eastern mysticism.
“I wasn’t looking for religion,” he recounted. “I was looking for God.”
Now shepherding a flock of more than 17,000 in Brooklyn, Bernard credits his coworker for her obedience in sharing her faith boldly.
“Because the presence of God was in the workplace, I am who I am today,” Bernard said. “The Christian lady who shared Christ with me has impacted all those I have impacted over the past 28 years I have been in ministry.”
Bernard shared his testimony to nearly 300 participants at a conference on “His Presence in the Workplace,” March 31-April 3 at The Cove Billy Graham Training Center near Ashville, N.C.
Participants included Christian CEO/business owners, nonprofit workplace ministry leaders, pastors and laypeople who share the same vision of using the workplace as a platform for reaching people for Christ.
Leaders of the conference said God is calling them back to His original truth of being disciples in all of life, including work. And they see pastors and other church leaders as having a critical role in helping Christians see their workplace as their mission field.
“A majority of the church congregation spends a majority of their time and interacts with a majority of the lost world in the workplace,” said Doug Spada, president of His Church at Work, a workplace ministry based in La Mesa, Calif.
“Pastors and those in the workplace alike are sensing a call to rethink our premise of ministry,” Spada said. “Obedience to this truth can ignite the church to awaken a sleeping remnant in the body of Christ — the workplace Christian.”
Many churches and pastors are seeing the vision of what can happen when they equip their people to be ministers in all of life, including their work or vocation, Spada said.
“I was encouraged by the shift of focus toward the local church,” he said regarding the conference. “Seeing the why and how the local church can become involved was most affirming.”
Bobby Jackson, men’s ministry director for the South Carolina Baptist Convention, said he also believes the key to workplace ministry is to help people in local churches see that God can use them in their places of work.
“One of the things I’ve tried to do with men in South Carolina is to encourage men to connect the mission of God with their passions, whether those passions are in their work or hobbies,” Jackson said. “God is doing great things in the workplace in South Carolina. However, I think a lot more could be done when our men become intentional about workplace ministry.”
During the four-day conference, participants engaged in workshop discussions on topics ranging from evangelism strategies and chaplains in the workplace to legal limits in workplace outreach to launching such ministries in local churches.
Keynote speakers included Mark Greene, executive director of London Institute for Contemporary Christianity in England; Eddie Gibbs, professor at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, Calif.; and Ed Silvoso, founder and president of Harvest Evangelism, Inc., San Jose, Calif.
Conference facilitator was Andria Hall, a former news broadcaster with more than 20 years experience with NBC, Fox News and CNN/USA.
Hall is currently writing a book titled, “The Walk at Work: A Professional’s Guide to Faith, Prayer and Daily Triumph at the Office.”
Worship leader for the conference was Dove Award-winning John Elliott.
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