Recruiting and placing people well is one of the greatest responsibilities leaders carry and one of the most challenging.

Too often, recruitment becomes reactive rather than reflective. Roles are filled quickly, urgency outweighs discernment, and capable people end up sitting in the wrong seat. The result is familiar: frustration, fatigue, and far too many people toiling when they were created to work.

In this short series, Call Them In, we explore a biblical and leadership-informed approach to recruitment, placement, and purpose. Drawing from the story of Samuel and David, we reflect on the principle that calling often precedes appointment and that discernment, process, and community are essential in recognising who belongs where.

Across three parts, we will:

• Rediscover the difference between work and toil

• Explore a practical framework – the five Cs of recruitment

• Reflect on leadership as stewardship of people, not just positions

Whether you are a leader responsible for placing others, or someone discerning your own next step, this series invites you to pause, reflect, and ask deeper questions about purpose, alignment, and flourishing.

Because when people are placed well, everyone benefits.

Right People, Right Place! – Part 1

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. Some time ago, as we were seeking to fill a vacancy here at UCB, I sensed the Holy Spirit impressing on me a simple but powerful thought: “Call in the person needed for this assignment, just as Samuel called for David.”

This was not a suggestion to bypass good process or responsible governance, but a reminder that discernment must sit alongside decision-making. As we prayed, reflected, and followed due process, the right person responded and we were deeply encouraged to see God at work through both spiritual attentiveness and practical wisdom.

You see, God knows the right person for the right place at the right time to do the right work, just as He knew David. Scripture consistently shows us that God’s calling often precedes public recognition. At the same time, calling is normally confirmed through community, character, and competence. God’s guidance is rarely isolated; it is discerned together.

Not only does God prepare people with the abilities needed for their assignment, but He also equips them inwardly for the responsibility they are to carry. Any sense of God’s anointing must always be held alongside accountability, fruitfulness, and integrity.

So today, if you are seeking to fill a vacancy, don’t simply rely on instinct or urgency. Prayerfully discern, involve wise counsel, and trust that God will help you recognise the right person for the assignment. When discernment and process walk together, leaders are far less likely to be disappointed.

Work Before the Fall, Toil After the Fall

Before we explore what we call here at UCB the five Cs of recruitment, it’s important to understand a foundational principle: there is a difference between work and toil.

Have you ever noticed that the word work appears in Scripture before the fall, while the word toil appears after the fall?

Genesis 2:15 tells us that God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. Work was not a punishment, it was the very first assignment God gave humanity.

After the fall, however, Genesis 3:17 introduces toil. Toil is described as painful, fatiguing, and burdensome effort. It is not effort itself that defines toil, but effort disconnected from purpose and alignment. This goes a long way toward explaining why so many people experience deep dissatisfaction in their working lives.

Your Job Is Not Your Work

Your work is not your job.

A job is something you are trained for, paid for, and one day may leave behind. A job is often temporary. Your work, however, is what you were created for. It is the unique contribution you bring to the world through your gifts, values, and calling.

Work is not merely about productivity; it is about becoming. From a biblical perspective, work is the expression of who God created you to be. Toil, by contrast, often occurs when someone is capable and hardworking but misaligned with their true assignment.

This does not mean that meaningful work is always easy. Scripture is clear that even those living fully within God’s purposes experience challenge and perseverance. The difference is that aligned work, though demanding, brings fulfilment, while misaligned work drains life.

That is why I often say to my wife Jackie that while one day I may retire from paid employment, I can never retire from what God created me for. I can step away from a role, but not from my purpose.

A Leadership Responsibility

Research tells us that around one third of our lives, approximately 90,000 hours are spent working. That makes leadership decisions around recruitment and placement profoundly significant.

When leaders help people step into roles aligned with their design, they are not just filling vacancies, they are stewarding lives. When people are consistently placed out of alignment, even the most capable individuals can end up toiling rather than working.

This is why discernment in recruitment matters so deeply.

A Question to Reflect On

So let me leave you with this question:

Are you working – becoming what God created you to be or are you toiling, enduring a role rather than living out your true assignment?

And as leaders, are we creating environments where people can work with purpose, or incidentally placing them in positions where toil becomes inevitable?

Next time, we’ll explore what we call here at UCB the five Cs of recruitment, a framework designed to help leaders discern wisely and place people well.

Until then, let’s be intentional about ensuring that we are truly working, not merely toiling.