A Secular Workplace - Part Three

"A Secular Workplace" 

(Part Three)

 Everyone wants to be liked.  Everyone wants to be popular – but that is a challenge when you are a Christian in a secular workplace.  Eventually someone will want you to do something that goes against your moral beliefs.  Then what?

“Do the Right Thing”

There it is.  The fork in the road.  One way is easier.  It’s downhill.  It’s the well-trodden path.  It’s smooth and wide.  “Everyone” takes that path.  It’s the path of compromise.  But as a Christian you know you must take the high road, even if you must take it alone.  It may hurt your popularity at work.  You may no longer be “one of the guys”.  The Bible is full of examples – the lion’s den, the fiery furnace, prison cells, even capital punishment.  But as a Christian, when faced with the choice, you must do the right thing, no matter the cost.

We should conduct ourselves with such holy integrity that our secular counterparts say things like, “Hey, I know, why don’t we get Doug to do it?”  “No, Doug’s a good Christian.  He would never do anything like that.”  “Well, then, let’s force him to do it.”  “No, it wouldn’t matter if you put a gun to his head, he would never go against his beliefs.”

This can be difficult, because it tends to keep a wall between you and your non-Christian buddies at work.  It means you will get left out of some of the fun.  That’s just the way it is.

You may ask, “But can’t I just be their friend?”  Yes, you should be their friend – all the way up to the fork in the road.  At that point the best thing you can do as a friend is to set a good example, and take the high road.

On this topic there is a scripture worth pondering.  First Corinthians 15:33 warns, “Do not be misled: ‘Bad company corrupts good character.’”  We all rub off on one another.  Sure, your good character will rub off on them.  But beware, because their bad character will also rub off on you.  At that point the fork in the road will separate you from some of your coworkers, and you will no longer be just another “one of the guys”.

Working in a secular workplace has many challenges, but it also has many rewards.  Pray that the Lord will use you as an agent of change in the lives of your coworkers.  Make the most of every opportunity.  The only Jesus they may ever see is the Jesus shining through you.

(Probably written around Sept. 2005)