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“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” (1 Peter 3:15)
Nowhere do I find myself more challenged by this scripture verse than when I walk through the door at work each morning. For Christians, the workplace is one of the main places where we are called to bear witness to the light of Christ inside us, and where we are exhorted to do unto others as we would have them do to us.
I work as Director of Finance for a trade association. My main interaction during the day is with my co-workers and members of our trade association. I used to wonder if I had to be at the water cooler giving sermons to people if I wanted to be faithful to Jesus’ command to share the gospel. But over the years, I have learned that there are all sorts of other, less threatening ways that I can bear witness to Christ. Let me share with you how I try to approach my workday so that I bring Jesus to the workplace.
Practical Steps.
Each morning, I start by consecrating my day to the Lord. As I am walking from my car into the office, or when I first sit down at my desk, I ask Jesus to bless my company, all my fellow workers, and the specific tasks that I will be doing that day. I tell him I want to be his witness at work, and I ask him to help me find ways to share his love.
At different points throughout the day, I try to stop what I’m doing and turn to the Lord for a few moments. My company’s designated smoking area is just outside my window, and some of our employees take a regular smoke break a few times a day. One day I realized that I could use this as a reminder. Whenever I see them outside my window, I know it’s time to take a short prayer break. Sometimes I even step out and join them. Some of them must wonder what I am doing out there, when I don’t even smoke!
In my business interactions, I try to remember that I am an ambassador for Christ. Most of my closer co-workers know I am a Christian, so how I behave is a sign to them of how much my faith helps me in my day. If I am just as angry, moody, or grumpy as anyone else, what kind of message is this sending that Jesus can bring peace to your life? Or if my co-workers can’t see that I really care for them, then my witness of Jesus will not be very strong. With this in mind, I make a conscious effort not to let the pressures of work cause me to treat someone in an unkind manner. If I do slip up and let the pressure get the best of me, I try to apologize quickly to whomever I may have hurt.
Just Doing It.
Let me share two examples of how being alert to the Spirit has helped me represent Christ to others at work. Our bookkeeper came to me one day to let me know she was having some medical problems and needed minor surgery. I sensed in my spirit that I should pray with her, so I asked her if she would mind if I said a prayer for her. She agreed, so I shut the door of my office and raised my hand toward her and said a short prayer asking Jesus to heal her and comfort her. Although this was just a small thing, I could see in her eyes afterward that she was deeply touched and thankful for my prayer. Jesus ministered to her through my little prayer.
On another occasion, I was at a meeting with some members, and one of them approached me and said he could not find a box of free products he had wanted to give out at the meeting. I could tell he really wanted me to stop what I was doing and help him, but I was swamped with work already. Finally, I asked myself: “What would Jesus do here?” Without even answering, I jumped up and helped him hunt down the boxes.
Afterward, he said he was really touched by what I did. I mumbled something about being a Christian and feeling it was important to help him—I don’t always get it out as confidently as I should!—and he said he could tell. In fact, I think my little act of obedience to the Spirit made his day.
Stressed and Anxious?
I mentioned above that I face a lot of stress at work. Let’s face it, we all do. But how we respond to the stress is key to our ability to bring Christ into the workplace. The evil one is no dummy. He knows that if he can get us flustered and anxious, it will be harder for us to have the peace of Christ in our hearts at work.
This is an area where the Lord has been healing me and helping me. The healing started some years ago when I went on a retreat and asked for prayer for what I considered to be an unhealthy level of stress at work. The other men on the retreat prayed with me for deliverance, and we all had a sense that God had freed me from my bondage to fear. They encouraged me to read Psalm 16 whenever I was tempted to fear:
Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup;
you have made my lot secure.
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance… .
I have set the Lord always before me.
Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken” (Psalm 16:5-6, 8).
I must be honest with you—this healing is still a work in process. Yet at the same time, I know I have been delivered. I can honestly say that I see more peace and joy in my day, despite sometimes having a hectic work schedule. When I get up in the morning, I read Psalm 16 and I ask the Lord to help me be secure in him in my day.
This doesn’t mean that I don’t still wake up with a nervous stomach sometimes. Some days, it’s even hard to eat breakfast. My wife jokes with me that it is unfair for me to be able to stay so slim, and I joke back that I would take the extra five or ten extra pounds in a second if the Lord would just help me get the final healing over my stomach!
Use It Well.
It is a fact of life that once we get out of school, we basically spend most of our waking hours at work for the next forty or fifty years. That’s a lot of time that we can use to witness to Jesus Christ.
I hope my story has encouraged you in some way. Remember, you don’t need to preach at the water cooler, you just need to ask Jesus to shine out of you during the day, and others will see it. Then, hopefully, they will ask you to give them the reason for the hope that you have!
*A pseudonym has been used at the author’s request.