Here are the examples of six friends who actively bring their faith to work.

Roger Fisher, a CFO, used to meet a group of employees before work for an hour of intercessory prayer.

Steve Tucker had as his ambition to use his home building company as a discipling venue. His dream was hampered but the constraints of the marketplace, but he has doggedly pursed it.

Stu Johnson has started a group of small companies that hire ex-cons and disciple them.

Os Hillman and Bill Castleberry are missionaries to the marketplace, leading Bible studies in businesses around Atlanta and meeting individually with businessmen to disciple them. Os writes books on this subject.

Steve Dupree has placed obviously Christian pictures around his office at a major computer manufacturer as conversation starters.

The marketplace is a big, obvious venue for discipling. Yet despite these success stories, for most businesspeople, it is an intimidating environment in which to express their faith.

This is true for at least two major reasons:

1. Strong Jesus-followers are in the minority. Most companies have at best an agnostic or downright antagonistic environment. Often, the language used is blue and godless.

2. Workers are paid by their employers for their time accomplishing certain tasks. Time spent discipling can be considered time stolen from the employer—an unethical thing for someone whose world view is ethical.

So what is a Jesus-follower to do? I’ve always found that if I ask Jesus, He has a creative, specific solution for me. Perhaps some of you have ideas.