Sharon Cheung is a staff worker at City Bible Forum Melbourne and loves helping women and young workers connect the dots between faith and work. She is also a big fan of writing, music, theology and art, with her own business: Scripted by Sharon. Recently, she agreed to be a writer for an exciting new Australian Christian magazine: Soul Tread, and I interviewed her about her new column exploring issues at the intersection of faith and work.

You are doing a regular Work and Faith column for the new Soul Tread magazine. Why did you say yes?

I absolutely love telling a good story and that's exactly what the column is all about: sharing stories of how men and women are following Jesus in their work. When Rachael (Editor) asked me to consider interviewing workers around Australia for this column, I thought it was a marvellous opportunity to get a front row seat to how God is actively sustaining his creation through the willing hands of others.

What are some of the assumptions Christians in their 20s and 30s might make about how work and faith mix together?

It's interesting how, as you grow older, you tend to classify parts of your life into categories that make it seem manageable. Here are my tasks and responsibilities for the home. Here is my to-do list for school/work. Here is my portion to serve as an active member of church etc. The vision of new life in Christ that the apostle Paul presents us in Romans 12:1 dashes these categories completely, or rather, helps us to see that the Gospel transforms who we are as we occupy the spaces of home, school, work, neighbourhood etc. It is such a wonderful yet challenging call - but it's also really exciting to realise that even in our toil, there are opportunities to worship and glorify God.

What is your vision for the column?

My prayer for the column is that it becomes a space where men and women of God gather on the pages of Soul Tread: whether as the worker featured in the story or the worker reading the story. In every way, it is an opportunity to give thanks to God for how he continues to work in the world through ordinary people. I also hope it inspires our generation to declare and display Jesus in their work!

What is your personal story of re-integrating work with faith?

I stumbled into full-time work after completing my uni degree without giving too much thought about how God might be involved in my work. Having grown up in church culture where the word 'missions' was largely attached to overseas missionary work and 'worship' was what we did on Sundays, I hadn't really understood what it meant to follow Jesus and entrust my whole life to him. Work was a means to enjoy life and I soon became frustrated with this 'purpose'. At that time, one of my youth leaders who had stayed in touch with me suggested I check out City Bible Forum - a workplace missions organisation. I went along to one of their breakfast events and was so captured by how the speaker applied the Bible to everyday life! It was like someone had switched on a light bulb and reminded me that I am first a Christian before the title in my email signature. Shortly after, I joined a prayer team and began meeting with other Christians throughout the working week where we prayed for our colleagues that they may come to know Jesus. I began to realise that God was with me every time I walked into work and that he cared about how I worked as well as who I worked with.

Your first interview is with Bek from Tov & Co. What excited you about that conversation?

Oh goodness! I am a design nerd and absolutely adored getting to know the maker behind the furniture. Before I got the chance to meet Bek, I stalked the Tov & Co furniture instagram account and fell in love with the beautiful wood work. Bek is a thoughtful Christian woman who is stewarding her gifts of creativity, excellence and community in a beautiful way. Her faithfulness to the vision God has given her is inspiring.

You have your own passion projects involving creativity. What is your journey of understanding how God can use the aesthetic?

It is not hard to see the relationship between beauty and value in God's creation. For example, even those who do not know God can agree that nature reflects a greater glory. For this reason, I have always been interested in creative projects that help others connect to something bigger than themselves. My latest project is called From My 5km to Yours and was born out of the lockdown restrictions in Melbourne. For six weeks and counting, Melbournians have been ordered to stay within a 5km radius of their homes. My mission is to create connectivity across our physical barriers through art and sharing stories; creating a common space for humans to create meaningful interactions and conversations about the bigger things in life.

An example of Sharon’s latest art project

Note: If you would like to support Soul Tread Magazine, they have a Kickstarter campaign and one of the rewards is an online Workship Workshop (try saying that five times quickly!) run by me, Kara Martin.