Career Planning for High School Students: From a Christian Perspective

By Adrian Gonzalez

In this book, high school students will be able to learn the foundation of biblical career planning. The Bible teaches that if you meet the following four prerequisites, Gods career gift will be given to you supernaturally. Make sure you learn them well:

Prerequisite 1: Become an active member of the church.
Prerequisite 2: Learn to submit to authority.
Prerequisite 3: Learn to receive discipline and correction with humility.
Prerequisite 4: Adopt an investor approach to discovering your God-given gift as it applies to career discovery and planning.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Feb 27, 2018
• ISBN: 9781973611806

Adrian Gonzalez

Adrian Gonzalez obtained a Masters Degree in Special Education, with the subject of transition (school to workforce) as the topic of his final research project. He also worked 10 years as an instructor for the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in the Work Force Training and Development Department. Currently, Adrian represents Mutual of Omaha Insurance Companies in the Miami-Dade County area, helping people build their financial security and protect their families and businesses. Additionally, Adrian provides career planning workshops for the community through local churches and community centers. Adrian Gonzalez has been married for 15 years and has a teenage son and daughter.

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Copyright © 2018 Adrian Gonzalez.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

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and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Scripture taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB), Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission.

ISBN: 978-1-9736-1181-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-9736-1180-6 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017919388

WestBow Press rev. date: 2/26/2018

Contents

Acknowledgements

Introduction

The Gospel Message

The Foundation of Biblical Career Planning

Chapter 1   Become an active member of the Church

Chapter 2   Learn to Submit to Authority

Chapter 3   Learn to Receive Discipline and Correction with Humility

Chapter 4   Investor Approach to Career Discovery and Planning

(Adopting an investor approach to God’s given gift)

What are the leading industries where I live? (Step 1)

Which of these leading industries am I interested in? (Step 2)

Who are the leading employers in the industry I have chosen? (Step 3)

What jobs do these top employers/market leaders need to fill? (Step 4)

To which of these jobs can I contribute the most? (Step 5)

Conclusion

The Ultimate Career Goal

Acknowledgements

I want to thank my editor, Lee Ann, from FirstEditing.com, for helping me in bringing this manuscript to completion. Without her guidance, dedication, and knowledge, this book wouldn’t have been possible.

Introduction

The decisions involved in choosing a career can be overwhelming. You wish for God to just show up and literally tell you what it is He wants you to do. If this is your case, how would you feel if someone told you that what you are asking is possible? The truth is, the Bible reveals the heart and mind of God for all aspects of living, including your professional career. When you want to know what something is useful for, you read the manufacturer’s instructions and you will find the intended use. In this same manner, God, your Creator, is the only one who really knows for what specific purpose you were designed, and the instructions are found in the Bible. The only condition, though, is that to find out, you must become a Christian. Therefore, if you are interested in finding God’s will for you, flip the page and read the following message. Your response to the Gospel message will determine if career planning from a biblical perspective is for you.

The Gospel Message

The Bible says that we all have sinned against God: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23 King James Version). It doesn’t matter how many good deeds we have done, we don’t measure up to God’s standard of right and wrong. The Bible also says that there is a punishment for our sins: For the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). We are all going to die one day physically, but this physical death is not the end. The Bible talks about a second death in the book of Revelation: And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death (Revelation 20:14-15). In this verse, the lake of fire is what is known as the second death. Those who end up in this place will be tormented forever and ever as punishment for their sins: And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever (Revelation 20:10).

Further down in Revelation, you can find the list of people who are going to this lake of fire: But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death (Revelation 21:8). Perhaps you are not a murderer or sorcerer; but what about a liar? Have you ever told at least one lie in your life? According to the Bible, all liars are heading to the lake of fire and brimstone: As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one (Romans 3:10). A righteous man or woman is someone who always does what is right before God. Do you always do the right thing? If you don’t, then you’d better listen to this important message: God loves you, and doesn’t want you to die and suffer in Hell for an eternity. However, you must understand too that He must punish sin. God is just and fair. If He allowed ours sins to go unpunished, He