An Accountant on Mission
Evah worked as an accountant at a women’s prison in Tanzania. She felt that her work and her faith in Christ didn’t seem to overlap much. She attended worship at her church on Sunday, but on weekdays at work, although she was kind to her coworkers, she mainly crunched numbers, kept to herself, and went home.
Then Evah participated in a “Work as Worship” training. And God used this opportunity to change not only Evah’s life but also the women’s prison.
The “Work as Worship” training is led by Discipling Marketplace Leaders, a Resonate Global Mission ministry partner led by Resonate missionary Renita Reed-Thomson. Resonate, the mission agency of the Christian Reformed Church in North America, aims to equip believers in CRC churches and around the world to join God on mission. The “Work as Worship” training equips believers to live out their faith in their working life and to spread the gospel wherever God has placed them.
“We have a general full-time call to ministry but very different and very specific locations for where that is carried out,” shared Reed-Thomson.
Evah wasn’t particularly interested in the training itself at first, but she recognized the name of the man leading the training: Pastor Anthony Kayombo. Evah had taught Kayombo in Sunday school when he was younger, and she was excited that the young boy she had taught had grown up to be a pastor. Wanting to reconnect with him, she decided to attend the training.
The training invited Evah to think about changing the way she viewed her work. Over the course of two days, she gathered with fellow Christians and dove into Scripture. She began to see her workplace as a mission field. As the training wrapped up, the leaders encouraged Evah and the other participants to share about “Work as Worship” with their coworkers.
Evah soon organized an evening fellowship with her colleagues at work. She invited Pastor Anthony to share about “Work as Worship” at the prison—and 35 of her fellow staff members showed up.
And God was just getting started.
Evah’s new way of thinking and working brought out her leadership qualities, and before long she was also promoted to serve as head of the women’s prison. Since then, Evah has worked closely with the women prisoners to learn about their skills. She started them on projects—baking, soapmaking, gardening, and tailoring—and they began selling their products and services. Now, when the women are released from prison, they have money saved up and they have skills that can help make their transition into society easier.
Evah said she has also noticed a big difference in how her employees do their jobs.
“They seem to be more focused and faithful and to have unique personalities in handling inmates,” she said.
“Wherever we work, we need to be asking, ‘What is God doing in this place, and how can I join him?’” said Reed-Thomson. “That question, by itself, can produce a change in how we see our work, and how to tie it to our faith.”
