Reading@Work

Supporting and encouraging Christians

to live out their faith in the workplace

> Resources > God@Work Kit:

We have been given permission to share the following details about the God@Work Kit resource – for further details about hiring the God@Work kit please contact Reading@Work.

The following is an abridged version of the ‘Information and Instructions for Users’ of the God@Work Kit.

God@Work Kit

Prayer activities to help you explore your daily work with God

Information and instructions for users

This God@Work Kit was developed by Sally Dakin & Paula Pocock in 2007, funded by a grant from the Alan Christmas Bursary Fund. It belongs to the Diocese of Oxford.

Introduction

The God@Work Kit is designed to help people to reflect on their life at work, and to make connections between their work life and their spiritual life. It can be used in a workplace, in a church, in a public building or a private home, on a conference or a retreat… anywhere!

The Kit contains all the equipment and instructions you need to set up nine ‘prayer stations’. It comes in three roller-crates, along with a large ‘Men at Work’ road sign. With this booklet is a CD containing sample publicity material, the road-sign logo, and general & specific introductions to the activities.

The prayer activities fall into four general (and often overlapping) categories: those which help people say ‘Sorry’ to God (marked ‘S’ in this booklet), those which help them say ‘Thank you’ (‘T’), those which help people to be Open (‘O’) to God about some aspect of their lives, and those which help them to say ‘Please’ (‘P’). We suggest a minimum of four prayer stations, one from each category.

Please put everything back in the appropriate labelled container when you’ve finished with the Kit!

Publicising your God@Work event

If you are using the Kit in a workplace, it’s worth considering the various ways people publicise other workplace events – for example, posters, emails, newsletters, intranet, agendas, PowerPoint, etc.

For a more ‘public’ venue such as a church, you may wish to involve the local media, as well as putting up posters, giving/sending out personal invitations, using websites, and so on.

The Kit includes a CD (which belongs with this booklet in an A5 zip-bag in roller-crate 1) on which you will find examples of a poster and a sheet of mini-invites, both easy to adapt for your own event, plus the road-sign logo.

Setting up the God@Work Kit

Your choice of venue should probably allow people some privacy for reflection and prayer, without being too hard to find!

The more space you have, the more prayer activities you can use. We suggest a minimum of four: one each from the four categories ‘Sorry,’ ‘Thank you’, ‘Open’, and ‘Please’. Or you could use all of them, in rotation.

If you have plenty of space and would like to create a ‘prayer journey’, we suggest arranging the prayer activities in the same sequence as they appear in this booklet.

You may like to use the laminated A3 and/or A4 ‘Welcome’ signs (in A3 zip-bag in roller-crate 1) to introduce people to the prayer activities. And each activity has its own A4 laminated introduction (in same zip-bag), which you may like to attach to a clipboard (in two A3 zip-bags). There are also some mini road-sign logos (in A5 zip-bag) to use as you wish – to help people find the venue, perhaps?

Gentle lighting may help people to relax, as may quiet background music – perhaps a CD on ‘repeat’, or a selection of CDs for people to choose from.

A) Thanking God for work - T

(Road sign)

Instructions

‘What could you thank God for at work?

Colleagues? Clients? Job satisfaction? Creativity?

Write something to be thankful for on a Post-It and stick it on the sign.’

Equipment – in A5 zip-bag in roller-crate 1

(road sign is separate item)

‘Men at work’ road sign, Post-It notes, pens.

Tips

Write a couple of thank you’s yourself, to encourage others to follow.

Afterwards, might you be able to use what people have written in some act of worship/thanksgiving, before you throw their Post-Its away?

B) Life-litter - S

(Paper shredder)

Instructions

‘You may be aware of ‘litter’ in your life that you’d like to get rid of – things you do at work which aren’t right… unhelpful attitudes… unhealthy habits…

Write down whatever you are willing to say goodbye to, and acknowledge it before God.

When you’re ready, put the paper in the paper shredder and turn the handle.’

Equipment – in box in roller-crate 2

A6 paper, pencils, eraser, paper shredder.

Tips

Start with your own ‘litter’!

You will probably need to empty the shredder occasionally; you might need to provide more sheets of A6 paper.

C) Anger - S

(Glass kettle)

Instructions

‘Switch the kettle on and watch as the water heats up to boiling point – and then subsides.

Do you sometimes get all hot and bothered at work? Or all steamed up? Or do you boil with anger or resentment?

Talk to God about how you feel and behave, and why.

What does God want to say to you?’

Equipment – in roller-crate 2

Glass kettle, de-ionised water.

Tips

Obviously you need a power supply for this one – and you might need an extension lead.

Make sure the kettle is always at least half-full.

Afterwards, just pour the used water away.

NB This is potentially dangerous for children.

D) Parts of life - O

(Threads)

Instructions

‘Take as many threads as you like, choosing each to represent a particular ‘thread’ in your life.

As you look as your collection, think about how the different parts of your life fit together…

Which seems to be the most important?

Which gets the most of your time and energy and money?

Tie them up and take them with you when you go.’

Equipment – in small box in roller-crate 2

Threads, ribbons, strings.

Tips

Just tip the threads out in a heap, so people feel free to rummage.

Afterwards, throw away any tied-up threads which people have left behind.

E) Work-life balance - O

(Scales and marbles)

Instructions

‘Imagine that these scales represent your ‘work-life balance’.

Which way do the scales tend to tip? – use some marbles to create that effect.

What would you have to do to achieve a better work-life balance?

Move the marbles around until the scales balance – and ask God to help you to do this for real.’

Equipment – in roller-crate 3

(marbles & basket in A3 zip-bag)

Scales, marbles in basket.

Tips

Start with a few marbles on the scales, to encourage people to have a go.

F) Time at work - O

(Clock and timer)

Instructions

‘How do you feel about time when you’re at work?

Which is your favourite time of day?

Which is your worst time?

When does time seem to fly?

And when does it drag?

Is there a particular time of day you’d like to talk to God about?’

Equipment – in A3 zip-bag in roller-crate 3

Timer, clock-face

Tips

The timer takes exactly five minutes to empty…

G) Worries at work - O

(Snakes and spiders)

Instructions

‘What do you worry about at work – both now and as you think about the future?

Choose a snake or a spider to represent something you feel anxious or fearful about, and consider what it would mean to surrender that fear to God and to trust his love for you.

When you’re ready, hand it over to him, and take time to receive his peace.’

Equipment – in A3 zip-bag in roller-crate 3

Toy snakes and spiders.

Tips

Space the creatures out, so it’s easier to choose one.

H) The boss/colleagues - P

(Shoes)

Instructions

‘Who do these shoes remind you of?

Can you find a pair that represents your boss?!

Think of someone from your work: imagine what it’s like to be in their shoes… what are their concerns? their hopes and fears?

Take a moment to pray for them…’

Equipment – in roller-crate 1

Ten pairs of shoes.

Tips

This activity probably works best with the shoes arranged on the floor. You may not wish to use all those provided – and/or you may like to find other types to extend the possibilities…

I) The team at work - P

(Paper people)

Instructions

‘Take a strip of paper people to represent a particular work team – decorate them if you’d like to!

Then pray for the individuals, and for the team as a whole.’

Equipment – in A4 zip-bag in roller-crate 3

Paper people, felt-tip pens.

Tips

Try standing some of the strips upright, and decorate one yourself as a starter.

You may like to provide more strips of coloured paper (A4 sheets cut in half lengthways) and some scissors, so people can create their own ‘teams’… You will need to create some yourself if they run out.

Afterwards, might you be able to use the decorated strips in some act of prayer, before you throw them away? (Be careful if any of the teams or ‘people’ are recognisable!)

September 2007

Reading@Work does not vouch for particular resources that it lists.

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