WITNESS AND WORK
By Brian Allenby
Terra Nova. 120 pages. £7.99
ISBN 1 90194 928 1
The title of this book is perhaps a little misleading - Brian Allenby is the National Director of Christians at Work and a reader could expect a book focusing on the challenges, opportunities and potential for Christians to witness at work. Instead he walks the journey of the Christian's life and witness and along the way he makes his application, rather fleetingly it seemed to me, to the world of work.
That said, this is a worthy book, full of good relevant Scriptural application and is an easy read in terms of style. At times his engineering background breaks through (nothing wrong with that - I too am an engineer!); for example, his first two chapters are 'The Journey Begins' and 'Safety Checks Before We Depart'! He includes interesting and challenging Bible teaching and application in chapters called 'Lessons from a Boat' and 'A Visit to Thessalonica' and follows up with some perceptive and interesting insights into contemporary attitudes inside and outside the church.
He finishes his book by directing us to the 'Living Hope' as our inspiration in our Christian witness. He concludes: 'The truth is simply this: we should be the most contented and most joyous people who journey through this world which is trying so very hard to make us conform to its corrupt standards'.
This week I have been on a training course where one of the speakers recounted an example of a person she managed who was under-performing, describing him as a miserable person who made his staff miserable. After a number of months trying to get him to speak about things, he eventually told her that he was a Christian, not really motivated in his role and wanting to do something quite different. She was able to help him, through her good management (my opinion - not her claim) into a new role from which he then moved into a completely different job. However, I fear that she and the delegates on the course were left with a picture of Christians being difficult, miserable and uncommunicative in their work rather than those who exude living hope.
At the risk of finishing on a difficult and miserable note (!), it is a bit pricey at £7.99 for 120 pages, but as long as you don't read it with the expectations I had from the title it is a useful read.
Ian Parker,
a civil engineer by profession, has worked in local government for nearly 25 years, and is a member of a Baptist church in Hartlepool
