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presented by Lisa Bishop
I am examining an important characteristic of God we can often find difficult to emulate. Grace. And specifically, we’ll be unpacking ways to be grace in the workplace.
Notice how I said “be” grace. Grace ultimately flows from your identity, and when you are truly living from your identity in Jesus, grace will inform how you act, speak, and live. Just as an aspect of God’s character is grace, you and I are called to imitate Jesus and be grace to others.
We see grace as a constant theme in the Bible. In the Old Testament we hear the very words of God as he declares his character:
The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin (Exodus 34:6-7).
The word translated gracious means merciful in Hebrew. In the New Testament, grace translated from the Greek word charis, means favor, blessing, or kindness. The most powerful demonstration of grace is God choosing to bless us in Jesus rather than penalize us when we sin and fall short of his glory. You have probably heard of grace defined as unmerited favor. Meaning, regardless of your behavior, God chooses to love you. I am so grateful for God’s grace, aren’t you?
Who is someone in your workplace you find hard to extend grace to? A coworker you find it difficult to love and show kindness toward? We often find it most challenging to act in a gracious manner with people who have different opinions than us or act in ways we find off-putting. But as an ambassador of Christ, you are called to love and be good-natured toward everyone, to live from grace because you have been given grace.
When you live from a place of grace, fully known and fully loved, even with all your flaws, you will be more inclined to have a posture of grace with others.
The next time a coworker does something that gets on your nerves or says something that gets under your skin, rather than reacting in the flesh, ask yourself, “How will I be grace in the workplace?”