Working Blessedly Forever Online Course
The Shape, Practice, and Spirituality of Marketplace Theology
A free 12-week live online course with Dr. R. Paul Stevens. Based on his three volume Working Blessedly Forever book series
Wednesdays, April 29 to July 22; 6:00 to 7:30 pm PDT
Free Course, by donation only.
To purchase the Working Blessedly Forever books at 40% off, use the web coupon WBF40 at wipfandstock.com.
Work Matters — Spiritually, Theologically, Eternally
Most Christians spend the majority of their waking lives at work. Yet many feel uncertain how their daily labor fits into God’s purposes.
Is work merely a context for ethics?
A place for personal witness?
Or is work itself part of God’s ongoing work in the world?
Working Blessedly Forever invites you into a deeper vision: That our work is not peripheral to faith, but one of the primary places where faith is formed, tested, and lived.
“After many years in the work world, the light finally came on — perhaps God had actually called me there. That realization was illuminating and profound: my work mattered to God.”
Living Blessedly Through Our Work
Marketplace theology, as explored in this course, is a way of attending to God in the real conditions of working life. It holds together meaning, spirituality, mission, and moral wisdom as a coherent way of living faithfully over time — not apart from work, but through it.
Working Blessedly Forever takes up that insight today, drawing on Dr. Stevens’ three-volume work and decades of teaching, writing, and formation at the intersection of faith and work, joined by trusted colleagues who help explore what it means to live — and work — blessedly.
How the Course Works
This is a live, relational, and reflective learning experience.
Weekly Rhythm
First half: Dr. Stevens teaches through the core themes of marketplace theology
Second half: An exemplar conversation with practitioners and theologians featured in the course readings
Each session combines biblical reflection, theological insight, and lived experience from the marketplace.
Details
Date: Wednesdays, April 29 – July 22, 2026
Time: 6:00–7:30 p.m. PDT
Pricing: Free, Donation Based
What You’ll Gain
By the end of the course, participants commonly describe:
A clearer theology of work that integrates faith and daily labor
Language to name their work as participation in God’s work
Practices for noticing God at work in ordinary, demanding contexts
A deeper spirituality shaped through work, not apart from it
Renewed hope for faithfulness over the long haul of a working life
This course is especially suited for those who want formation, not just information.
Weekly Schedule & Themes
-
Learn what it means to understand your daily work as a place where theology is lived.
Guest exemplar: Dr. Steve Garber — The Seamless Life -
Discover the wisdom of Ecclesiastes for navigating purpose, limits, and meaning in everyday work.
Guest exemplar: Millie Chan — My Journey as a Lawyer -
Explore how Scripture and real human experience together shape a faithful theology of work.
Guest exemplar: Dr. Wilson Chan — Doing Theology from Below -
See how ordinary work can become an act of worship offered to God.
Guest exemplar: David Sayson — Work as a Sacrament -
Consider how the Triune God is present and active within our working lives.
Guest exemplar: Dr. Dzuthotso Tunyi — Living and Working with the Spirit of God -
See how God quietly forms our character, faith, and hope through the ordinary pressures and practices of work.
Guest exemplar: Alvin Ung — Being an Active Contemplative
-
Learn to notice the hidden presence and activity of God within everyday work.
Guest exemplar: Al Erisman — Noticing God at Work -
Explore how faithful work can contribute to the flourishing of organizations and communities.
Guest exemplar: Andre Chen — A Kingdom Business -
Wrestle with the moral tensions of money, power, and justice in the real world of work.
Guest exemplar: Dr. Jean Lee — The Snake and the Dove -
Discover how everyday work participates in God’s wider mission in the world.
Guest exemplar: Andre Chen — Forming a Marketplace Church -
Understand the relationship between the church, the kingdom of God, and the world of work.
Guest exemplar: Wilson Chan — The Missional Church -
Reflect on how present work and future hope belong together in God’s renewing purposes.
Guest exemplar: Dr. Byron Lambert & Thomas Choi — Jesus and the Life to Come / Peacing the Powers
What People Are Saying
“For while now I had this huge inner conflict trying to decide what to do with my life. I was particularly torn between the desire to go into full-time ministry or working in my field of Engineering because I had an incorrect view of what full-time ministry is and a false hierarchy of occupation. I only saw my work as a way to produce income and make relationships with people. But I never took pride in what I did nor did I ever think that it was glorifying God. I now know that my calling is to be in the engineering field.”
“After many years in the work world, the light finally came on — perhaps God had actually called me there. That realization was illuminating and profound: my work mattered to God. Sometimes the deepest encouragement is simply being reminded: when I go to work, I am still doing God’s work.”
“God quietly forms our character, faith, and hope through the ordinary pressures and practices of work. Sometimes the Spirit is waking us up to the truth that our daily work is one of the primary places God shapes us. Faith becomes real when it is lived in the actual conditions of work.”
Meet (Some of) Your Instructors
-
Founder, Institute for Marketplace Transformation
Paul Stevens is a leading voice in marketplace theology and faith–work integration, with decades of experience as a teacher, pastor, and author. His work has helped Christians across vocations understand their daily work as participation in God’s redemptive purposes.
-
Dr. Steven Garber is a teacher, writer, and long-time voice in the global conversation on vocation and the integration of faith, work, and public life. His work consistently explores the question of who we are, why we are here, and what we do with our lives. A former professor of Marketplace Theology and Leadership at Regent College and founder of the Washington Institute for Faith, Vocation and Culture, he is the author of several influential books including The Seamless Life. Dr. Garber’s teaching invites people to see all of life — work, worship, relationships, and responsibility — as held together in God.
-
Millie Chan is a lawyer, business advisor, and marketplace leader with decades of experience in law, leadership, and family enterprise. After more than 35 years in legal practice, she now works with business families and individuals in areas of leadership, succession, and stewardship, and serves as an independent director for publicly listed companies. Her life and work reflect a deep commitment to integrating faith with leadership, vocation, and the responsibilities of the marketplace.
-
Dr. Al Erisman is a writer, professor, and former Director of Technology at The Boeing Company, where he worked for more than three decades. With a PhD in applied mathematics, he has served on numerous scientific and academic boards and is widely respected for his work on faith, business ethics, and leadership. He has authored several books and continues to help leaders think deeply about how faith shapes decision-making, vocation, and the practice of work in complex organizations.
-
Alvin Ung is a marketplace practitioner and spiritual guide who reflects deeply on the integration of work, contemplation, and Christian formation. His teaching invites believers to live attentively before God in the midst of active professional life, holding together action and spiritual depth — becoming what he calls an “active contemplative.” His contribution to IMT emphasizes spiritual formation shaped through everyday work and faithful presence in the world.
-
Andre Chen is a business leader and marketplace practitioner who serves as IMT’s Taiwan Team Lead. Formerly CEO of an international apparel company with operations across Europe and Asia, he brings extensive global leadership experience. Andre’s work focuses on faithful leadership, kingdom-shaped business, and the role of the marketplace in God’s renewing mission in the world.
Course Materials & Reading
The course is based on Dr. Stevens’ three-volume work:
Working Blessedly Forever (Wipf & Stock, 2024–2025)
Participants will receive a reading guide aligned with each week’s topic.
Book options
Three-volume set: $120 CAD (including shipping)
Or, if applicable, $200 CAD with a $100 CAD charitable receipt
Books are encouraged but not required to participate fully in the course.
Registration by Donation
This course is offered freely, with the option to donate, as part of IMT’s mission to form Christians for faithful work in the world.
Your participation and generosity help sustain IMT’s teaching, writing, and formation work globally.