Reflections of a Christian Woman in the Workplace

Although I work in a faith-based environment, one would think there would be little temptation, however, that statement couldn't be further from the truth. As a Christian, I must ever be vigilant of the temptations and snares of the devil. Certainly the devil is constantly tempting the unsaved, but sometimes he seems to work overtime in causing the children of God to fail. JAMES 4:7b "Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Sometimes it isn't easy to resist the devil; especially when he disguises in various ways in the workforce such as an increased workload, daily interruptions, decreased staffing and assistance, low morale, administration struggles (at one time there appeared to have been a revolving door with the numerous leadership changes), corporate takeovers and buyouts, etc. With the ever increasing stressors, it is so easy to complain. In PHILIPPIANS 2:14, "Do all things without murmurings and disputing." I should be thanking the Lord for my job and career instead of complaining (especially in the present economic downturn)!

How do you resist the temptations at work? First, you need to recognize the temptation. Oh, how I've been too quick to respond and later realize that should not have been my response at all. Secondly, pray to God for His help and guidance; and reflect on His word. Even if a Bible is not readily available, dwell on favorite verses. When Christ was tempted by the devil, he would quote scriptures to Satan, causing him to cease the temptations and thereby fleeing from hisresence. (MATTHEW 4: 1-11 speaks often emptation of Christ.) MATTHEW 4: 10,11: "Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve. Then the devil leaveth him, and behold, angels came and ministered unto him."

The stress level can be so profound that we are not in-tuned to how our speech can appear to those around us. For example, the pattern of speech can be rushed when in a hurry, but to the other person it may be perceived as being rather short or rude. The manner of our speech may come across as having a harsh tone when it was not intended to be harsh at all. (You never hear anyone announce CODE BLUE in a quiet, hushed manner, but loud and to the point; after all, a patient's life is at risk.) Of course most everyone I work with is trained to respond to these situations; however, the same mannerisms and speech patterns can spill over to non-emergency situations.

COLOSSIANS 4:6 speaks of gracious conversation: "Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man."

There recently was an incident at work involving another co-worker. I quickly jumped to conclusions and pointed the finger at her so-to-speak. Well that evening God convicted me that I was too hasty with her, so I prayed that her feelings would be spared, and tomorrow would be a better day. The next morning I arrived to work earlier than usual, and to my surprise, so did she! It seems she was there to apologize to me, when I needed to make the apology. To make a long story short, God is with us every step of the way; all we need to do is to call His name and obey His commandments.