One distinguishing hallmark of the “Generation Y” young adult is the likelihood of a job-switch every other year.

As I embark on the 13th year of my professional pilgrimage, I am privileged to have worked in the military, marketplace, and Christian ministry. Hence, I am inclined to associate myself with the ambitious yet fickle-minded traits of my generation and the increasingly challenging prospect of being active marketplace evangelists.

It is neither simple nor straightforward to shine for Jesus as a young adult in a progressively dark world. That said, I hope that my experiences and observations will encourage you to persevere as an ambassador of truth.

I offer my thoughts on the intrinsic issues of having pride, maintaining integrity, leaving a legacy in the workplace, and how that may be linked to winning souls for Jesus.

My definition of Marketplace Evangelism is: The intentional effort of ensuring that colleagues and work associates recognise your Christian faith and lifestyle through your choice of words, work attitude, and what fills your calendar after office hours.

You should also deliberately and regularly attempt to minister the Gospel of Christ through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit during God appointed opportunities – the results are up to God but the effort is down to us.

Dealing with pride

How you deal with pride kicks off your first foray into the battlefield as a Christian in the marketplace – you cannot escape it.

In my initial weeks in Shanghai, I adorned what my boss candidly referred to as The Typical Singaporean Mentality, where I actually believed in my superiority over my Chinese counterparts’.

I have repented, of course, but I remember feeling severely humbled when my supposedly inferior administrative manager demonstrated, with ease, how to negotiate both complicated Chinese laws and cunning Chinese businessmen with shrewdness. Only then did I appreciate our vast differences and his vast experience.

It was a sobering realisation.

Regardless of position or pay cheques, we must carry in our briefcases a teachable spirit willing to learn from subordinates, peers, and superiors.

After all, what do we have to lose except our repulsive and often obstructive pride?

Observe what 1 Peter 5:5-6 (The Message) instructs: “… And you who are younger must follow your leaders. But all of you, leaders and followers alike, are to be down to earth with each other … So be content with who you are, and don’t put on airs.”

Displaying visible integrity in invisible places

I spent 21 months as a marketing manager in the alcoholic beverage industry in Shanghai. Sometimes, I had to accompany my boss to entertain clients at bars and nightclubs. In a (literally) dark place fraught with affordable sleaze, it becomes easy to forsake your Christian values, especially so if you are a visually-stimulated, testosterone-filled man.

I recall a conversation with the 20-year-old girl who was paid to host me. Smack in the middle of our superficial chatter, I asked her point blank: “Why are you doing this?”

Rather than me taking her home that night, I sincerely hope that she took home my probing question instead!

Temptation is real and it charges at us with alarming regularity. We must be aware of the different types of temptations in our various arenas of work.

Fight the temptation of sluggishness and haphazard work. Fight the temptation to abuse the privileges of position. Fight the temptation of excessive occupational indulgences. Fight the temptation of a secret and decadent lifestyle when overseas or when no one is observing.

Leaving behind a legacy of authenticity

Be true to yourself and stick to your convictions – pretending to be a good testimony is short-lived and strenuous. It is acceptable to mess up or have fragments of bad attitude in the beginning, but it is how you repent and recover from your mistakes that truly matter.

I am persuaded that a non-believer would find it refreshing to see an imperfect believer making blunders and bettering himself from it.

A former Singapore Armed Forces colleague commended me for heading into full-time ministry because it was something I had told them I would do eventually. And when he learnt that I am ministering in a church now, he spoke of the respect he had for the decision I had made.

Our success is neither measured by material achievements nor prestigious positions but by the unique footprints we leave behind.

And our testimony is not what others think of us but what they think about Christ in us. I quote Steve Green in his timeless song:

May the footprints that we leave lead them to believe
and the lives we live inspire them to obey.
Oh, may all who come behind us find us faithful.

Getting the Church involved

The Church must teach her youths and young adults how to remain relevant instead of teaching them to be perfect religious snobs. With behaviour that is sometimes out of this world, what does it mean for a Christian to be in, but not of, the world?

The Church must have a humble spirit and a non-judgmental attitude if she wants her people to reach the lost in the world!

Believers must learn to write their own testimonies and be equipped to share it anytime and anywhere; they must also know when and how to step out of their comfort zone to bring comfort to a society that is hurt, confused and searching for more.

I have discovered that being available and meeting felt needs are the most effective ways of marketplace evangelism, and these usually work in tandem. You should be available for them in their time of need.

I encourage my young people to be sensitive to the prompting of the Holy Spirit whenever they converse with people, so that they are able to recognise when they should transit from a worldly dialogue into a spiritual conversation.