This post is gonna be about my job.
I really, really love it! Like a lot. There are so many reasons... For one thing, the people I work with are fantastic. They are so easy to get along with and are super understanding about my lack of knowledge (some of these people are ridiculously RIDICULOUSLY intelligent!) I have met some amazing people, chewed their minds and learned a lot about the animals at the aquarium (and am continuing to do so)
But outside of that, I need to talk about the philosophies behind it. Most people know that I've spent the vast majority of my (still young) adult life working in Children's Ministry in Church. If I had my way, I'd spend the rest of my life doing that... So, why all of a sudden am I so into working at the Vancouver Aquarium as an interpreter!?! Because I've suddenly got this incredible feeling of doing God's work OUTSIDE of church. Ok... I know we are supposed to embody Christ "and whatever you do whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God the father through him." - Colossians 3:17 (Thank you Randy Hein) So this idea of embodying Christ, and doing God's work in my everyday life ISN'T a new concept to me, per se... But it's been rekindled and - to coin a Christian word - reborn in me! I'm rediscovering what it means to bring Christ with me wherever I go. And It's an amazing feeling!
So how is working at the Vancouver Aquarium helping me bring Christ to the world? Stewardship. Plain and Simple. Black and White. One of my favorite things about church and why I love working and living and breathing in it, is the connection that we have with God and his Creation. God has given us this world to love and care for. He has entrusted us (his greatest creation) with one of his best creations! THE WORLD IS GOOD! He wants us to care for it and love it! And I do, or try to everyday! And my workplace is amazing for that very reason. There is a feeling of stewardship... Of owning up to our actions... Of actively Changing things. Without being a Christian organization, they are doing exactly what (I believe) Jesus would want. From arctic Climate Change programs, to research to save Dolphins from Fish nets, to a carbon neutral footprint by 2011... This place understands what it means to care for the planet and all the life on it!
Everyday that I bike in to work, a smile washes over my face... because I know that God is smiling down on these people. They may not know it, or believe it, or accept it... But I believe in the depths of my heart that God looks to my workplace and screams "This is GOOD!"
Although i am only there on a very casual contract which is very quickly coming to an end... I have learned so much thus far about the science of marine life and more importantly what it means to take care of a gift as precious as our planet. And that's something I'll always carry with me :)
I know that was a very cheesy entry, but I've been meaning to write about it for a while. It's been burning up inside me. There it is :)
