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Presented by Lauren Stibgen
Unless you work for a Christian company, and, let’s be honest, even if you do, it is important to remember that we live in a fallen world. The characteristics of a fallen world are all around us, and we all sin and fall short. Even as believers, we will still sin. The difference we have is Jesus.
While there are many Scriptures that outline the differences between a worldly walk and a Christian walk, Romans 12 provides one of my go-to lists when I am thinking about the fallen world versus the perfect, new, flawless world we are promised as believers—heaven. Although we will not have heaven on earth right now, how we show people a glimpse of Jesus and this perfect world should be our focus for living out our faith through our work.
In Romans 12:1-2, Paul is clear in his appeal, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. And to not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
So, what does this world look like at work? In the verses following in Romans 12, Paul provides us a “do this, not that” list.
First and foremost, do not think of yourself more highly than you ought (Romans 12:3). Simply, be humble. The opposite of humility is pride, and I think we can all think of a time when we were prideful. Of course, it is easier to see this in others, but let’s think of how we can display humility. Maybe you are leading a project. The team is finding great success, and someone provides you with an opportunity to present your project to the leadership team. Pride says, I, I, I. Humility says, we did this together. Can I bring the team with me to the meeting?
Let love be genuine (Romans 12:9). When I think of this, I automatically think of checking my motives. Why am I asking questions, complimenting someone, or giving them a small token of appreciation? I know this may sound strange, but sometimes we are prone to show “love” so that we can experience gain. Make sure you can answer for yourself that your compliments are genuine, and your gifts whether physical or of your time are given without the expectation of seeking something in return.
Don’t be slothful in zeal. Serve the Lord (Romans 12:11). Colossians 3:23, tells us that we work as to the Lord and not for man. Showing up to work with the Lord on your heart and working for him is a good reason to have zeal. Zeal is defined as showing great energy or enthusiasm in pursuit of a cause or objective. Maybe you really don’t love your job right now. Change your thinking. Be full of zeal as a service to the Lord! Instead of grumbling, think about how different someone will experience you today if you show up with zeal! Maybe this is your opportunity to move to faith at work 2.0! You can let them know who you work for! The Lord!
Bless those who persecute you (Romans 12:14). Live peaceably and do not avenge yourself. This must be one of the most difficult things to do. C. H. Spurgeon uses a great word for this—calumny. A simple definition of this is slander, but overall, it refers to words that damage your reputation. In this instance, words spoken at work. It is way easier to put a zealous skip in your step than it is to do as Paul says and to live peaceably and not avenge yourself. Throughout Scripture we are told that the Lord will avenge us. In Romans 12:19, Paul reminds us, Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay.’ He goes on to tell us the contrary way to handle this. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Romans 12:21).
I have found that the more I fight to avenge my good name, the more strife it stirs in the workplace. When someone chooses to speak poorly about you, it may be hard to outwardly bless them, but perhaps you pray for them or pray for God to care for your situation specifically. It also can be the tendency of others to stir up strife for us. Maybe they ask why we aren’t avenging ourselves and then try to convince us to speak poorly about this other person. Again, your inaction may be another opportunity for faith at work 2.0! Tell your colleague that you are praying for the person who has persecuted you. In fact, maybe after some prayer, you find a way to have a conversation with the other person and bring peace instead of strife.
Persecution can take on more than just words. Perhaps you have a very negative boss who causes great strife. Their words are discouraging versus encouraging. How can you be a blessing to your coworkers who are experiencing the same thing? Again, faith at work, 2.0. How can you be a great encourager?
Rejoice with those who rejoice. Weep with those who weep (Romans 12:15). We all experience highs and lows at work. Some of this is directly work related, but, as you well know, we all carry our personal joys and sorrows with us daily. Celebrate your colleague who was promoted. Support your colleague who received some bad news about a promotion she so sorely wanted. Be mindful of celebrating birthdays and other personal milestones for colleagues and be sensitive when they receive bad news. Faith at work 2.0! Maybe you can point out how thankful you are to God for a success or offer to pray for someone who has received that bad news. The opening to do this lies in your consistency of living your faith through work.
Don’t be haughty, but associate with the lowly (Romans 12:16). So, now you are the boss! You have received a promotion. Maybe this promotion has allowed you access to people or places you have never experienced before. Perhaps you’ve been invited to a meeting or lunch with your new colleagues. The adage goes, don’t forget where you came from. How can you be humble and still connect with people? Your position as a leader gives you even more of an opportunity to shine Christ’s light in the workplace. Again, faith at work 2.0! How can you uplift those in a lower position and help develop them? In fact, in Romans 12, Paul tells us if our gift is leadership to lead with zeal!
Don’t be wise in your own sight. Are you a subject matter expert? Do you love your job so much that you are truly the go-to on all things related to your department or position? Proverbs 16:18 says that Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. There are plenty of warnings about pride. How can you help someone else shine? Maybe it is imparting your knowledge to someone else or teeing them up in a meeting to be the expert instead of you! Shine the light on someone else who has strength!
As you can see, this list from Romans 12 gives some good guidelines for a Christian walk. Staying rooted in the Word of God can help us remember that our calling is to show others our faith—our walk—through our work. This walk sometimes is not easy. Finding your encouragement to strengthen your walk may need to come from outside of your workplace. Communities like The Christian Working Woman can bring you into community with like-minded believers who can help you focus and pray for you. Your church may have community groups where you can also find this support. Either way, you don’t need to do it alone.
Perhaps you are ready for faith at work 2.0! People have noticed you are different. They are wondering why you are positive all the time, uplifting people when things just seem to be awful at work. You feel strong and have a community behind you as an encouragement. Start simple, offer to pray for your colleagues. When you send a card or a note, add a Bible verse. I love using Proverbs because they are, after all, full of wisdom. Maybe you simply talk about your weekend and tell people about the women’s conference you are headed to!
I am praying for your Romans 12 walk at work this week!