Jim: You've tuned into iWork4Him, the voice of collaboration for the faith and work movement.

Martha: We are your hosts, Jim and Martha Brangenberg, and our mission is to transform the workplace of every Christian into a mission field. What does that look like in your workplace? Well, let's find out right now.

Jim: I think we need to start with: Happy New Year! You know, every new year comes with a great promise. The promise of a fresh perspective, and the promise of fresh, resolute, new patterns in our life. New Year's has a magic about it. Even though it's just another day on the calendar, it's the beginning of a whole new year.

And it seems like, as the years fly by, each year has a theme of its own for iWork4Him. The theme for 2024 is moving from, iWork4Him to I work with him. What does that mean? And what does that look like? Martha and I are going to talk about that today together as we celebrate what God did in 2023 and look forward to what God is going to do in 2024.

Welcome to the new year show. iWork4Him style. So Martha, as we come to the end of another year, it always causes us to look back at what happened this year. So You first, because it's always appropriate for ladies to be first. What was your highlight moment or moments of the year?

Martha: I think for me, the biggest highlight overall was being able to have the ability to finish the building project that you and I've been working on, and it's called Central Place. And we rehabbed a 140 year old building, and to celebrate it with a ribbon cutting, and just really dedicate this space. I mean, all along, that was, that was our goal, and our, just our All of the work that we do, we dedicate it to the Lord, but just saying, okay, now it's, we're on the other side of that. And what do you get, what do you have in store?

Jim: And even as we speak, I mean, the project isn't really ever done.

Martha: I know that's why I hesitated to say that word, but it's complete.

Jim: As we're recording this show. The final cement parking block just got delivered for our parking lot because for some reason this parking lot had five cement blocks, but you can park eight cars here and and of course, because that's what they had.

But now we have new parking blocks. So if you come to visit us here in Southwest Missouri, you're always welcome. And we'd love to have, we'd love to give you a tour. We've had many people. We've already have five or six people from around the country stop in and visit.

Martha: So, Jim, what is one of your highlights for this year?

Jim: Oh, a highlight for this year. I gotta tell you, my favorite thing about being here at Marionville has been the nights we spent on our front deck that you made me build on our house. But really, the highlight was getting this building done, but it has been how the community has embraced it. And we have had so many different people come and visit us from all across the country, from California, from Colorado Springs, from Northwest Arkansas.

I can't even think of all the different places, but just to be able to use the building to greet others, it is a meeting place. We've had the community meetings. We've had 10 or 15 community meetings in our building already and that's just a highlight to be able to. That's a lot of highlights. Sorry, so the number one highlight.

Martha: No, that's okay. You did good.

Jim: How about the number one highlight for the year? Has been being married to you.

Martha: Oh you're so sweet. Okay. So what's your least favorite moment of the year as long as you're reminiscing? Do you have a least favorite?

Jim: I don't think I can mention anything on the air, my least favorite moments.

I really don't. I mean, it's been a good year. Being, we have really loved being here in Marionville, Missouri. We haven't had to drive as many miles this year. I don't know that I have a least favorite moment. I really don't. Do you?

Martha: I think the same thing. I think there's been a lot of hard moments. But not least favorite, because I think one of the places I know where God has us right now is we're taking those moments and trying to learn from them. So as opposed to being like, I mean, there's a lot of hard things that go on in life. And yes, we don't necessarily want to repeat them. To, to quantify him that way and to, I don't know why I - maybe you shouldn't have written that question, (laughter)

but that's okay because I think there are a lot of people right now listening that you may have a least favorite moment, something hard that happened in this year that you would wish wouldn't have, or that you could forget, but I think one of the things that I would like you to hear is let's learn from them and move on.

You know, I probably could say like my least favorite moment was losing my dad. But at the same time, we have spent so much time this year reminiscing about the godly man that he gave us as a as a memory. And that the fact that he gets to be on the streets of gold right now, you know, it's like we knew that time would come in life and and I'm so grateful for all that he gave us. And so even his passing gave us a lot of beautiful things.

Jim: And constantly constantly giving us beautiful things and the fact that we got to interview Martha's dad Ted Hains right before he died and that will go down. And and he got to participate in his last board meeting just days before he died, a couple of weeks before he died. And we were able to say goodbye and say hey When you get up there, don't forget to be interceding for us. Cause we need lots of prayer down here. So don't be forgetting about us. And I know he wouldn't.

But I would say what will I remember 2023 for? Well, of course the passing of your dad, but really the jealousy. I'm like, okay, Ted, now you're on the other side. So don't forget about us. But also moving my parents back in our backyard.

I mean, we, we've had the opportunity to be caregivers for our folks and in lots of different ways, all of our parents and now our parents are in our backyard. And that is good because I don't have to drive to Arizona to help them anymore. But it gives us an opportunity to daily interact with them, which is something we really have enjoyed with, with both sets of our parents.

We want to be involved in their lives and make their lives easier so they can stay independent as long as possible. But that move was really hard. That was hard.

Martha: And, and I think that you know, as we remember the past year, it's important to remember the lessons that we learned along the way and how many times we saw God show up in the details.

And you're talking about your parents move, but God orchestrated everything. Every step of that journey, we could not have logistically made it happen any better than God allowed it to, and you know, that's, I, I celebrate that as a, as a milestone, as a lesson in trust, and I mean, there's just so many things, so I think that I'm just going to continue to say that, you know, when I look back on the year, it's the lessons that we learned along the way and hoping to remember them and And celebrate them so that we learn from them.

You know, Jim, you always say, man, when we, we go through a hard time, it's like, I don't want to have to go to this class again. You know, we don't, we want to pass the exam. We want to learn the things that we need to learn so that we don't have to repeat second grade. You know, it's like, we don't want to have to repeat that lesson.

And so, yes, there's hard things that happen in our personal lives, in our, you know, just so many ways. But. knowing that we have a greater, stronger, continuing to grow that ability to trust in him and the one that loves us more than anything.

Jim: And to say goodbye to 2023, probably the biggest thing I'm glad to say goodbye to is we've had a lot of just waiting on the Lord.

And in the last several months, God has used us to do, to host a dozen online events, which is something we've gotten really good at. And we're starting to see just doors open up of opportunity to do ministry right here in our own little small town that we love here in Southwest Missouri, Marionville, Missouri.

Come visit. Did I say that? Come visit. And bring pie. Okay. No, we'll have pie for you. That's what it is. Something like that. We'll get pie. That's right.

Martha: I make pie.

Jim: Yeah, we do. And I eat pie. So that's why I look like I do. Martha looks like she does.

We're grateful for all that God has in store for us in the next year, but it's good to say goodbye to 2023 and say, we're glad that 4 dollar gas is gone right here in Missouri. And right now we're back to 2.50 gas. How about that? We're celebrating the small things,

Martha. We really do love the fact that 2023... (phone ringing) It's, it's ringing in the new year. I thought that was great. I was ringing in the new year. That's right.

Martha: You know, so it is, it's that celebrating, looking at what God's done in the past and then looking to the future and, and being able to flip that calendar and say, okay, God, what's next?

And like you said, in this, in the opening, it is just a day on the calendar, but it represents a scripture that I love very much. That, you know, his mercies are new every morning. And sometimes we take that to a bigger level. There, his mercies are new in the new year. And so I really do love New Year's and the fresh start that we get to impose on ourselves because really that's what we're doing.

So as we reflect on this past year and we look to the new one, I just want to say how grateful I am for some changes that we've made personally this year by switching our cell phone service to Patriot Mobile and our internet protection to SaferNet VPN.

Jim: It's so true. God opened the doors for us to get the great cell coverage we expect, but allowing our dollars to support our conservative Christian beliefs.

In fact, it actually helps to further the mission of iWork4Him. patriotmobile.com/iWork4Him. Check it out for yourself. And as far as our computers, well, let's just say what great protection we have in place now that we're using SaferNet, SaferNet. com. On all of our devices, our tablets, our phones, our computers, their antivirus, the VPN, their security are top notch and it goes with us to our home and when we travel it brought us safe surfing and safe working when we're in hotels and on the road.

Martha: Yeah and I'll put all the details in the show notes but if you know Jim and I you know that we don't get passionate about something unless it really works and it aligns with our values. So both of these companies do just that and so much more. So start off the new year with making a few changes that can help you and bring alignment to your values.

Jim: You know, so let's talk about our hopes and our dreams for 2024. And I'll start off here because ladies were first the last time so I'll go first. I'm really hoping that. Our involvement in our little local church would allow the church to just see and experience all that God has for them. When you come in with new ideas into a small town, you got to be really careful.

But we go to church with amazing stalwarts of faith, people that have been walking with the Lord for way longer than we have. And we bring a fresh perspective and I'm really hoping that we can make an impact there in 2024. That we can really be a blessing to all those people that we go to church with on a weekly basis. And of course continued involvement in growth in our community.

Martha: Yeah, and I think when I look to 2024 you know the the The possibilities are endless. And who knows? We've learned, Jim, even in this last year. Like we would have never guessed that the things that transpired in 2023 did and we really don't know that for 2024. But I just, my dreams and my visions really include seeing what God is doing around us and joining him in it and celebrating it and not being stuck in expectations.

You know, that we are expecting something to go a certain way. You know, there's some big events on the horizon that we're involved in in 2024. Very excited about that and seeing God continue to bring collaboration in the faith and work movement and just getting more believers to understand their workplace as a mission field.

Oh, you're thinking!

Jim: I am thinking. As a couple I'm looking forward to, so things I hope for us as a couple as we will celebrate 38 years in 2024 and of knowing each other. In 2024, we will have officially been dating for 40 years. We'll have known each other for 42 years since we were 16 years old.

Oh, that means we're also going to turn...

Martha: well, our reunion, it's our 40th high school reunion.

Jim: That doesn't even seem possible. I still feel 16. That's not allowed.

Alright, but as a couple, I look forward to vacation. We're going to do something, you know, I want to go on a cruise or go to like, I just want to get away for a week. Just us. For vacation. We didn't get that done in the last couple years.

Martha: Yeah. And some more time with our kids and grandkids. You know, those are just hopes and dreams that that, you know, I think it's really good to sit down and say, what do we want? Because if you guys are all like us, the time goes by and you're like, oh, man, I thought we would have done more of that this year. Where did it go? And so sitting down, I just want to encourage you, have this little dream session yourself. We, we unfortunately or fortunately get ours digitally recorded and everybody hears it. So it's like, okay, did that happen? And we've had that occasion, Jim, where we've gone back and listened to our New Year shows from the past and said, What were we thinking?

But I think it's a good exercise to say, you know, what do I, what do I as a human, as a wife, as a mom, as a grandma, what do I want to see happen this year? And then, you know, go from there and say, Lord, how do you, how do you want to see it? How does this align? So those are some good

Jim: and as parents, we want to be involved in our kids lives. Our kids are all of course, grown, gone, married. Two out of three of our kids have children and our third one would love to have children. So we're hoping to be encouragers to our kids, to be involved in their lives to the point where they like it. And so that's good. It's always important. And also to just teach them how to, what does it look like to be parents of parents?

And, and so they can learn from us, so that when they're our age, they've perfected it because they're still saying we're not perfecting it. But it's okay. They don't send us letters and tell us that, but sometimes they just text, you know, dad, you're so annoying.

Martha: You know, so a lot of people say like we are the ham in the ham sandwich right now, you know, we're that sandwich stage where we have parents and we have kids.

Jim: Is what that means? Because I like wonder bread and I'm just thinking about the bread on the top is so squishy.

Martha: Yeah, you're not the bread, honey. Right now you're the ham or you are the peanut butter and jelly. Maybe you're the peanut butter and I'm the jelly. Oh, maybe that's what it is. But anyway, we're, you know, in that stage.

Jim: I'm gooey the oily piece and you're the sweet, savory piece?

Martha: You're the meaty protein. You know, this is, this is just proof of the different ways that Jim and I look at life.

Jim: Well, is this chunky peanut butter? So now you're saying I'm fat? I mean, is that what you're saying?

Martha: Stop! I think there's so much more that we should be talking about.

Jim: As caregivers we'll still continue, you know, we look forward to just helping our parents to remain as independent as they can for as long as they can.

That is our, our goal, which is why we move my parents right next door to us. And Martha's sister moved in with her mom after her dad died. It's, it's just an honor to walk alongside our folks. As long as we have, we have folks that are 88, 89 and 90.

Martha: You know, I think, too, Jim, so many of our listeners are probably in that same stage. Because our parents are in this generation that has the ability.. They're way outliving what they thought it would be. And so we are, more of us are caregiving and what an opportunity that is but it is something to really focus on and to do it well and to honor that time of life.

Right. So what about as ministry leaders, Jim?

Jim: You know, what we have in our ministry within the faith and work movement, you know, we're collaborators. And in 2024, I look forward to finishing the first phase of the tapestry project, documenting as many ministries as we can document. that are involved in disciplining workplace believers so that all of you, our listeners, can get access to them in your town. So you know who is there, who can, who can equip you deeper in your faith and living out your faith at work.

I'm excited about that because that's where we've kind of rose to as ministry leaders, but I'm also kind of excited about doing more emcee work, doing more speaking work. We've really, I love to speak. It's fun. I'm hoping I get a chance to preach more at our local church. If they let us back in the doors after I preached last week, I don't know. It's kind of fun. What about you?

Martha: And I would, I would ditto all of those things and just, you know, I, it makes me think that right now I just want to encourage you. If you are involved in a ministry in your local area that has to do with connecting your faith and your work, please reach out to us and let us know about that organization because that's a part of this tapestry project and we know that we only know the surface and we've only scratched the surface of all of the documenting that needs to happen so that they can be connected together because that's really our goal.

Yeah. So, you can email Jim@iWork4Him.

Jim: Or call our listener line and leave us a message, 866 713 9675 or 866 713 WORK. Leave us a message with, hey, here's who I'm involved with that's disciplining me on how to live out my faith at work and we'd love to hear about it. And then we'll contact you and talk to you about it.

You know, as community influencers, when we moved to Marionville , Missouri, we just thought we were moving here to be near one of our kids so we could be already close to them so that when we're old they didn't have to move us close to them. It would already be in place. But what happened is that God has used us to be influencers in this town just to encourage people. We've got opportunities to pray with so many and to provide a building for people to meet and opportunities to get deeper involved with different departments within our city. But our goal here is to really help transform our city into being a great place to live.

Martha: You know, I think so often we just assume we're going to leave that responsibility to somebody else. So I just want to encourage the listeners, if you're thinking right now, like, how could I ever be involved in helping to Influence the direction that my community is going or decisions that are made, look for it. Put yourself out there. Get to know people. Go to meetings. There is a desperate need for your involvement, but sometimes it's - it is not being on a committee.

It is loving somebody at the corner when, you know, they're walking by and they need a bottle of water or, you know, whatever, a lost dog, whatever it might be. But that leads to a relationship that you can then take further. And I just, I just think that there's so many possibilities of ways that you can have influence for Jesus in your community. You just need to step out and do it.

Jim: You just start by loving on your neighbors. I mean, actually just loving your neighbors, even if they're not so lovable some days. Those that are really unlovable, pray for them and watch God transform your heart as he wants you to love your neighbors. You know, Martha, I think as we close out today's show, I want to talk about what do we hope God does in our own lives in 2024.

And for me, two things. One: I want to learn to hear God's voice. I want to just more effectively walk with him, work with him. And so that's really hearing God's voice and working with him, making that transition of not doing all this stuff for God, but to actually God, what are you doing? Where are you active? How can I work with you in what you're doing? That's really important to me.

I want to be able to lead us well as a couple, to be able to impact others lives through our marriage. And I just want to be a better guy. And I know that there are sometimes I feel a nudge and I ignore it because it's inconvenient. And I want to be able to follow those nudges and follow what God is up to.

Martha: And I think for me you know, I just, I pray that I am being the woman that he wants me to be and not doing things out of obligation or out of expectation, but rather out of obedience. And to me, that's, that's something that I think a lot of us struggle with. You know, that there's a lot of expectations out there that are not of God, that, that we have, even as a church, self imposed.

So I, I'm still praying that I'm saying the right yeses and the right no's, and I'm putting my energy where it needs to be, but not where I just want it to be, because I know that I can do it. But, that God wants me to be involved in different things.

Jim: And just know that as we pray for you listeners, and we prepare every week to talk to you, that our goal is for you to recognize that your work is an incredible gift from God, that your workplace is a mission field, and that you've been chosen for that mission field, and that God needs you to live out your faith vibrantly, which means screw ups and all in front of those that you work with so they can meet Jesus because you may be their only chance to meet Jesus. And that's what iWork4Him is all about. And we want to connect you to a ministry that will take that deeper in your life as you live out your faith at work.

And so interact with us. We'd love for you to come along and be a part of who we are as a ministry. iWork4Him. You know, Martha, all of this talk of the new year makes me want to share so many resources with each of our listeners. God has allowed us to curate information, so much information over the years.

I just want to make sure that each of you knows how to access it. Please connect with us on your favorite social media platform, and if you're not sure where to go or where to start, just reach out at iWork4Him. com/ contact and we'll walk with you. We'd love for you to be a part of our team and help the millions of workplace believers here in this country believe and understand that their workplace is their mission field and how they can work with God.

We invite you to join us today at iWork4Him. com / donate and be a monthly giver because you'll be amazed to see what God will do in your life as you support the ministries that are feeding you on a daily or weekly basis, and iWork4Him, I know, is one of them, because you're listening to this show.

We could use your support. Just look for what God is going to do in 2024. Martha, we're working on shifting our attitudes from iWork4Him to I Work With Him. What does that mean to you as we close out to today's show?

Martha: Well, I just think that it's really actualizing more of the conversation that we, we talk about with different guests that we have all the time. When we are praying about business decisions, when we are asking him what he wants us to be doing in our daily life to actually, maybe it's even putting an empty chair in our office so that we're working with him beside us. And and and be thinking about that cognitively all the time that we're not just inviting him into what we're doing We're not just doing it for his glory, but we're doing it with him as an active partner.

And and Jim, that's just a constant challenge for us to change the way we think, because again, Romans 12:2, I mean, we talk about it so often, but we don't want to copy the behaviors and customs of this world. And those customs keep changing in the church and outside of the church because we get influenced by those around us and our influence needs to come from God.

Jim: And so we need to change the way we think. Happy New Year. iWork4Him, audience. You've been listening to iWork4Him with your host, Jim and Martha Brangenberg. We're Christ followers. Our workplace, it's our mission field, but ultimately, iWork4Him!

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