Joining Him: Living Out God’s Missional Calling in My Retail Pharmacy
If you had asked me five years ago what it looks like to be a missionary at my job as a community pharmacist, I probably would have told you that it would have involved sharing the gospel with my coworkers or patients in some kind of time-efficient way. However, God has begun to show me how much more He has for me in my calling as a pharmacist. This calling began when I was 14 years old, a recent cancer survivor impressed with how God had used medicine to heal me, and living in the country of Indonesia where my parents were missionaries. But twelve years later, after marriage, pharmacy school, and now children, I began to look back and see God’s direction thus far. I was finally a licensed pharmacist and I began to wonder: What was God’s plan for me as a pharmacist? I had been led this far, but was this the end? Was just being a pharmacist God’s plan for me? Not at all. In fact, as I look back, it was just the start of a beautiful partnership God had planned since the beginning. His calling wasn’t just for me to be a pharmacist, but to join Him in the work He had already been doing in the hearts of all the people I have encountered at my job so far.
The apostle Paul alludes to this in 1 Corinthians 3:9-10 saying, “For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building. According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder, I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care of how he builds upon it.” This is kingdom-minded work; it goes beyond the typical job requirements of filling prescriptions and answering questions about medications. It is the application of God’s command to make disciples of all nations – to pick up the work where the laborers are few. There are few laborers where I work, and this has opened my eyes to working in a whole new way – it’s not only sharing the gospel but living it out just as Christ did. God has revealed a number of specific areas where He calls me to join in His work. The first is in prayer. My coworkers have come up to me unexpectedly, knowing I was a Christian, asking for prayer and support over difficult circumstances in their lives. I thought about my parents prayer walking through unreached neighborhoods in Jakarta, and I felt like God was leading me to “prayer walk” through the lives of my coworkers and patients, actively interceding for their spiritual and physical needs on a weekly basis. I chose Wednesday to be my prayer walking days, when I take my lunch break to fast and pray for the pharmacy, my coworkers and customers. I let them know I’ll be taking that time to pray and ask if they have anything they need prayer for. It’s been so exciting to see God work in my relationships with the people I work with in this way, as well as encouraging me or preparing me to love and serve all those who I encounter.
God has been also revealing that He is at work through the ethical decisions I make as a pharmacist. These decisions may be as small as making sure we are following rules of record keeping, and range all the way to not overdosing or giving someone an incorrect medication. In some cases, there are decisions where I walk a fine line between servicing our patients and getting outside the bounds of the law. Praise the Lord that I – we – have the Holy Spirit there to help and guide us! I am also reminded in Colossians 3:17, that “whatever we do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” We are ambassadors of the gospel, in justice, in truth and integrity, all in the name of Jesus. I am grateful that it is not up to me, and I am humbled to be representing Christ in my decision-making. May I represent the work of God well!
And where God is at work, the enemy, Satan, often tries to discourage. Satan has been targeting God’s work in a number of areas in my pharmacy. One of the biggest discouragements often comes from the difficult people I encounter. A retail community pharmacy is a crossroads for people of all walks of life. Our clientele range from newborns to
those on hospice. We laugh and enjoy the nicest customers, and struggle and argue with the most angry and hurting. Anyone who works in the retail business will usually tell you that the people that they interact with are often the most difficult part of their jobs. But in this challenging environment, I am reminded of how we can be more like Christ to them. Ephesians 4:29-32 encourages us to only let words that are kind and uplifting come from our mouths–nothing that is bitter, full of anger, or malice. It is hard to fight against our sinful urge to lash back, especially when we might have other factors, such as time, that might be pressuring us. But God’s word encourages me to resist this and to instead mirror Christ in my interactions.
Another major challenge I face at my job is the pressure of time. One of the most difficult innovations in the field of pharmacy was the introduction of the pharmacy “drive-thru”. Since this development, we have been pressured to fill a prescription medication safely and effectively in the same amount of time it takes for someone to run through a Chick-Fil-A line and get a chicken sandwich. The most obvious difference is that their menu consists of 30 or so items, and our inventory has at least a few thousand. Not only do we have to dispense the right medication, but we have to make sure that the medication is safe for the intended individual who might be on ten other medications that could interact with it. Added to that, our pharmacy fills about 400-500 of those prescriptions per day while providing other professional services. So to say that we care about time in a pharmacy is an understatement.
If lack of time is a major factor where God has placed me, how will I have time to share the gospel, disciple coworkers, or obediently respond to the work God is doing? I am grateful that it is not up to me. Just as Paul says in Philippians 1:6, “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” God is at work even in the trials and in the hustle. We are called just to be faithful and obedient. What seems impossible for us is possible with God. I have always been in awe when I have been able to have deep spiritual conversations with my coworkers and patients during the busy hours of work. God works in their hearts, and most of the time, His Spirit spills out and they initiate discussion. In all of this, God is glorified, and I am left even more amazed by the God we serve.
As a Christian pharmacist, partnering with God at work in the pharmacy, I still have struggles and feel discouraged. I long for more laborers to join me in the work. However, our God is powerful. He uses the weak and makes them strong. God has promised that “[His] grace is sufficient for [us], for [His] power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the
more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10) I trust and pray that God will continue to show His strength through my weakness as I labor on in my calling and mission field of pharmacy.
Written by Dr. Joshua Ortega, PharmD
