When AI Touches Your Job
Hope And Practice For Christians
A member of your church sits in the parking lot after midweek Bible study.
Her company has started a “pilot” with new AI tools.
Emails write themselves.
Reports appear from a prompt.
Leaders talk about “efficiency.”
She loves her job. She also wonders how long it will be her job.
You see versions of this story everywhere.
A nurse hears about AI in diagnostics.
A teacher is told to use AI lesson builders.
A young adult finishing college reads headlines about “disrupted careers.”
Behind the headlines sits a simple question. What does it mean to follow Jesus as AI reshapes work and widens gaps between people who have power and people who do not.
WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR
You do not need statistics to know people feel uneasy. Still, data helps you see the wider pattern.
A 2025 survey from Pew Research Center reports that about half of workers in the United States feel worried about how AI will be used in the workplace. About a third say they feel hopeful, and a similar share feel overwhelmed.¹
Another Pew study finds that 50 percent of Americans feel more concerned than excited about the growing use of AI in daily life. A majority say the risks of AI for society are high.²
A recent Harvard Youth Poll reports that 59 percent of young adults in the United States see AI as a threat to their job prospects.³
At the global level, the International Monetary Fund estimates that AI exposure reaches about 40 percent of jobs worldwide, and about 60 percent of jobs in advanced economies.⁴
The United Nations Development Programme warns that AI could widen gaps between rich and poor states if access to skills and infrastructure stays uneven.⁵
The World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2025 lists inequality, social polarization, and technology divides among the top risks for the coming decade.⁶
These reports come from different directions.
They point in one direction.
AI will touch most workplaces.
Without wise choices, the benefits will flow to a few while the risks fall on many.
WHAT THIS DOES TO HEARTS AND BODIES
In your congregation, this does not show up first as charts. It shows up as tension headaches, shorter tempers, and long quiet stares at kitchen tables.
People feel several things at once.
Fear.
“Will my job survive. Will my skills age out before I reach retirement.”
Shame.
“I should know more about technology. I feel behind.”
Comparison.
“Other people seem to use AI with ease. I feel slow and replaceable.”
Anger.
“Leaders talk about values, but decisions feel driven only by cost.”
Numbness.
“I do not want to think about this anymore. I will scroll and try to forget.”
A recent article in Harvard Business Review notes that job security fears are now central in many workplaces and tie directly to stress and mental health.⁷
Your people carry this stress into worship, into small groups, into parenting, and into their sleep.
SCRIPTURE ANCHORS FOR AN AI AGE
The Bible does not mention algorithms, but it speaks with depth about work, wealth, and power.
Genesis 1 and 2 present human beings as image bearers who work in cooperation with God. Work is part of calling, not a curse. The ground becomes hard in Genesis 3, but the dignity of labor remains.
Psalm 104 describes God as the one who sustains creation and gives food “at the proper time.” Work is real. Provision is finally from God.
Jesus speaks to people who worry about daily provision. In Matthew 6 he tells his listeners not to worry about food or clothing, but to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. He does not shame those who worry. He names anxiety, then points to the character of the Father.
James 5 speaks hard words to wealthy landowners who hold back wages. The cries of the workers reach the ears of the Lord. Systems that profit by squeezing workers are not new. They are not unnoticed.
Acts 2 and 4 give a picture of the early church as a community where resources are shared, and needs do not go ignored. This is not a simple program for every era. It is a sign that the Spirit of God pulls people away from hoarding toward mutual care.
These passages offer four anchors.
Your deepest identity is in Christ, not in a job title.
God cares about daily bread and hears the cries of those treated unfairly.
Wealth and technology are not neutral. They are tools that reveal what people love and whom they serve.
The church is called to show a different way of life, especially when economic pressures rise.
SPIRITUAL TENSIONS IN AN AI ECONOMY
The statistics and Scriptures meet in several inner tensions.
Fear versus trust
Many people in your church trust God for forgiveness but not for monthly bills. AI makes the future feel less predictable. Discipleship work here is slow. You help people bring concrete fears into honest prayer. You resist spiritual slogans. You keep pointing to the character of God and the presence of Jesus, not to vague optimism.
Self-protection versus solidarity
When workers feel threatened, the instinct is to pull back.
Keep quiet.
Protect your own options.
The New Testament calls the church to carry one another’s burdens. That includes economic burdens. In an AI economy, this may look like sharing networks, mentoring others into new skills, or contributing to support funds when someone loses work.
Resentment versus lament
Some members will resent “tech people” or “executives.” Others will resent older leaders who seem slow. Resentment adds heat but not light. The Psalms offer a different path. Bring complaint to God. Name injustice. Ask for wisdom and mercy. Lament keeps the heart soft while you seek change.
HOW THIS SHOWS UP IN CONGREGATIONAL LIFE
You will see AI anxiety show up in ordinary moments.
Staff meetings about church technology.
Should you use AI tools for sermon summaries, graphics, or administration. Some staff members are eager. Others are wary.
Budget meetings.
Giving patterns shift as members deal with layoffs, retraining, or stalled promotions. Leaders wrestle with whether to automate tasks in the church office.
Pastoral counseling.
A mid-career member wonders if retraining at a “boot camp” is wise. A young adult says, “I feel like my degree is already outdated.” An older worker who has been loyal to a company for decades feels discarded.
Small groups.
People trade tips about AI tools and side projects. Few talk about how these tools affect their sense of self, their sleep, or their prayer life.
Global mission.
Partners in lower-income countries face a different AI story. Some see new tools for translation, agriculture, or telemedicine. Others lack basic connectivity and fear being locked out of new opportunities. Reports from agencies and the UNDP warn that the gap between countries with AI capacity and those without could grow wider.⁵
In all of this, pastors and lay leaders hold a crucial role. You are not AI experts. You are shepherds in a time when technology pushes on souls.
PRACTICES FOR INDIVIDUAL DISCIPLES AND FAMILIES
Here are practices you can invite people into. They are simple. They are not quick fixes.
Name the worry before God
Encourage people to pray about AI and work in specific terms.
“Lord, I feel afraid that my job as a customer service rep will disappear.”
“Lord, I feel pressure to use tools I do not understand.”
Invite them to write these prayers. Pray them in small groups. Bring them into pastoral visits.
Re-anchor identity
Regularly remind people of who they are in Christ.
Adopt simple identity statements.
“I am a beloved child of God before I am an employee.”
“I am called to faithfulness in my work, not to carry the whole future of my industry.”
You can build liturgies that speak this before the congregation during times of blessing for workers and students.
Practice Sabbath from productivity obsession
Technology pulls people toward constant measurement. Metrics, dashboards, and numbers fill screens.
Teach a Sabbath that includes a break from AI tools and from work email. The purpose is not to fear technology. The purpose is to clear space to receive life as a gift, not as a performance.
Discern AI use in your own work
Encourage members to ask three questions when they use AI in their job.
Does this tool help me serve people better.
Does this tool tempt me to cut corners on integrity or truth.
Does this tool reduce my work only to speed, or does it open room for deeper human care.
These questions push discipleship into concrete decisions.
Learn together
Create low-pressure learning spaces where people share what they are seeing. A monthly “work and tech” gathering. Short testimonies on Sunday about how members are trying to follow Jesus in AI-touched workplaces.
This reduces shame. It replaces isolation with shared learning.
PRACTICES FOR PASTORS AND CHURCH LEADERS
You also carry specific responsibilities.
Teach a theology of work and technology
Preach and teach from Genesis, Proverbs, the Gospels, and James about work, wealth, and power. Help people see that Scripture expects tools to grow more complex and societies to wrestle with justice. Connect these themes directly to AI.
Pray for workers in public worship
Include prayers for those in industries under heavy change. Pray for those retraining. Pray for those making decisions about deployment of AI. Name occupations. This signals that the church sees weekday life as holy ground.
Create support structures
Consider benevolence funds, job-search support groups, or partnerships with local training centers and community colleges. Even small acts, like hosting resume workshops, can express solidarity.
Examine your own use of AI
If your church uses AI for administrative tasks, communication, or content, talk about it openly. Explain what you use and why. Invite feedback. Model the kind of transparency you hope employers will offer.
Engage public issues wisely
You do not have to issue statements on every development. You can, though, encourage members who work in policy, education, and business to think Christianly about regulation, access, and fairness. Support them in vocational discernment rather than giving them a list of ready answers.
A HOPEFUL HORIZON
AI will change work.
Global surveys from Stanford’s AI Index show most workers expect their jobs to change in the next five years.⁸
The gospel offers two firm hopes in the middle of that change.
First, Jesus Christ is Lord over all powers, including economic systems and technologies. His resurrection is not threatened by software. His kingdom does not depend on quarterly results.
Second, the Spirit forms a people who live differently in every age. The early church learned how to follow Jesus under empire and trade routes. Later believers did so under steam engines and factories. We now learn under data centers and AI models.
Your task as a pastor or lay leader is not to predict every outcome. Your task is to help people remember who they are, to teach them to pray their fear and anger, to lead them into communities of shared support, and to call them to seek God’s justice in how AI is used.
The river of AI-driven change will keep moving.
The cross and resurrection stand firm on both banks.
SOURCES & FURTHER READING
Pew Research Center. “Workers’ Views of AI Use in the Workplace.” February 25, 2025.
Pew Research Center. “How Americans View AI and Its Impact on People and Society.” September 17, 2025.
Harvard Institute of Politics. “Harvard Youth Poll, Fall 2025.” John F. Kennedy School of Government, 2025.
International Monetary Fund. “AI Will Transform the Global Economy. Let us Make Sure It Benefits Humanity.” IMF Blog, January 14, 2024.
United Nations Development Programme. The Next Great Divergence: Why AI May Widen Inequality Between Countries. UNDP, 2025.
World Economic Forum. Global Risks Report 2025. Geneva, 2025.
“How to Lead When Employees Are Worried about Job Security.” Harvard Business Review, December 2025.
Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence. “Public Opinion.” In The 2025 AI Index Report. Stanford University, 2025.
“The AI Adventure: How Artificial Intelligence May Shape the Economy and the Financial System.” Financial Stability Board, July 11, 2024.