Work/Life: The Four-Day Work Week
Post-pandemic, the concept of the four-day working week has steadily increased in popularity. The pandemic helped many to understand the importance of a better work/life/church balance, so more Christian organisations have begun to offer hybrid-working opportunities (where people can split their work week between home and the office) and more part-time roles have become a popular employment choice in the past couple of years.
At Christian Jobs, I’ve always been part-time. I started on three days a week, and am now up to four. The fifth day of the week is extremely important to me - it’s reserved not only for other pursuits and commitments I have outside of work, but also to take the lead on maintaining our home while my wife is working full-time. It allows me to carry the culture of honour that we endeavour to follow at Christian Jobs into my marriage, and my life outside of a work environment too.
Honouring My Marriage
My wife currently works full-time for our church, and outside of that volunteers some of her time each year planning a Christian festival. Safe to say, she’s busy. A lot! This is where God has called her - event coordination and administration are her spiritual gifts and she thrives when she’s in these environments. And this is where having the fifth day becomes so important for both of us. While Julia is out at work, I can support her by using this day to take the lead on keeping the house tidy, doing laundry, cleaning, looking after our dog - doing all these general “life admin” things willingly and gladly so that she doesn’t have to, so she can focus fully on what God has called her to. In this way, I honour my wife and we keep a good balance making sure neither one of us overexerts ourselves.
Honouring My Church
Having the fifth day also means I can fulfil what God has asked of me outside of work. Before moving up to Yorkshire, years ago God planted the seed in my heart to take our church here through a rebrand. Now, having the time in the week to commit to the project I’ve been able to do that, and having these valuable hours in the week means I also have the time to keep developing the brand, using the skills and vision God has trusted me with. As our church continues to grow, having dedicated time in the week enables me to make sure I’m honouring this responsibility that God has trusted me with.
Honouring My Work
It’s great having the fifth day in the week to dedicate to the points I’ve discussed above, but this of course means that I need to make sure my four-day schedule for Christian Jobs is as airtight as possible, while still allowing some flexibility for new and priority projects (I explore this a little more in another blog on our site, Introverts In the Kingdom). It means I have to be extra responsible as to how I spend my time over my four work days, making sure I’m honouring my employer and colleagues in doing the job that has been asked of me.
Working four days a week has given me a manageable balance between work, life and church, and I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity that it has given me to serve God in each area of my life, to the best of my ability.
At ChristianJobs.co.uk we’re regularly having Christian organisations advertise their part-time roles with us, so if you’re looking for a role that will help you achieve a better work/life balance, go to christianjobs.co.uk/jobs today to explore the roles we’re currently supporting. Or alternatively, contact our recruitment team via info@christianjobs.co.uk to see how they can help you in your search.