The prophet Samuel had David brought in; in other words, he called him in! ‘Then the LORD said, “Rise and anoint him; he is the one.” So, Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David’ (1 Samuel 16:13 NIV).

Recruiting the right person can be very challenging and some time ago, as we were seeking to fill a vacancy here at UCB, I felt the Holy Spirit saying: ‘call in the person needed for that vacancy, just as Samuel called for David’; and trust me, God did answer our prayers and the right person responded.

You see, God does know the right person for the right place at the right time to do the right work; just has He knew David. Not only does He make sure that they have the competencies for the job, but He also anoints them before their appointment. So today, if you are seeking to fill a vacancy, don’t just take my word for it but try to ‘call them in’ and be assured that you won’t be disappointed as God will help you to discern the right person for the available assignment.

I also believe that there is a godly strategy to recruit the right people and here at UCB it’s what we call the five C’s of recruitment.

But first, let’s understand one very important principle: you can either work or you can toil through a job. Have you ever noticed that the word WORK is used before the fall and that after the fall it uses TOIL? (see Genesis 3:17 NIV). The definition of the word TOIL is ‘to exert strength with pain and fatigue of body or mind with efforts of some continuance or duration’. Not surprising it’s why so many people hate their job. Well, your work is not your job. You get trained to do a job; a job is what you may be paid to do and a job is temporary; however, your work is what you were born for. Many see work as a punishment but work was the very first assignment that God gave to man. God created humans with the ability to work and not to toil. The first instruction God gave Adam was work, to tend the Garden of Eden (see Genesis 2:15 NIV) and to tend means ‘to look after’ ‘watch over and care for’ ‘minister to or wait on with service’ and it was later after the fall of man and when sin entered into the world that the word toil is used.

So, from a biblical definition, WORK means ‘to become what God created you for, your work is your life’s unique assignment to reveal yourself and your unique gift to the world’. Whereas, toiling leads people to do something they hate. When a person is operating in the assignment that God created for them, they are in a different place of fulfilment and God calls that work. That is why I tell my wife Jackie I can’t retire from what God created me for, but one day I can retire from paid employment. But I can still continue working to fulfil the very purpose that I was created for.

Therefore, if we are to enjoy life to the full, knowing the difference between work and toil is vitally important, especially as research tells us that one third of our life is spent ‘at work’: that is 90,000 hours at work that the average person will spend over a lifetime. Therefore, let’s make sure that we are working and not toiling!

Next time let’s explore together what we call here at UCB the five Cs of recruitment. But let me leave you with this question; are you WORKING, that is becoming what God created you for, or are you TOILING, enduring your job instead of enjoying your WORK? So, make sure that you find the real experience of what WORK is really about!