Lesson 13
I. Introduction.
Many Christians think that there should be a separation between
their attitudes and actions at work from the rest of their lives.
In other words, it's OK to practice your Christianity at home
or at church, but at work it's different. We have different responsibilities
at work and must be seen as someone else in order to be successful.
II. Create a Bridge between your Spirituality and your Work
Acts 8:9-13, 17-25
The bridge that Simon tried to make between his work and his spirituality
was the wrong one. Instead of letting his spirituality influence
his work, the work that he did influenced him to desire the gifts
in an inappropriate manner. To his credit, when he was rebuked,
he repented and asked for forgiveness.
Many people who have thought that their spirituality should become a more integral part of their life have replied, "I'd love for that to happen but I'm just too busy. I have to go to work." If that sounds familiar, then maybe some of the things we say in this lesson will be helpful.
To create a bridge between your spirituality and your work
means that you take the essence of what you believe into your
daily work life. You dismantle the dichotomy that so often exists
between your spiritual life and that which you do for a living.
It means that kindness, patience, honesty, and generosity are
made qualities that you practice at work also. If someone is late
or makes a mistake, you try to be patient. Even if it's your job
or appropriate to reprimand someone, you do so out of love and
respect. You are as generous as you can be--with your time, money,
ideas and love.
In a way, work is a perfect environment to practice your spirituality.
In a given day, you have so many opportunities to practice patience,
acts of kindness and forgiveness. You have time to think loving
thoughts, smile, embrace others, and practice gratitude. You can
practice being nondefensive and a better listener. You can try
to be compassionate, particularly with difficult or abrasive people.
You can practice your spirituality in virtually everything that
you do. It can be found in the way you greet people and deal with
conflict. You can exhibit it in the way you sell a product or
service--or the way you balance ethics with profit. It's literally
everywhere.
As difficult as it may be, we need to turn away projects that
conflict with God's word, even if it means a potential loss of
profit. If questionable ethics are involved, we need to make the
right choice. We need to be able to look at ourselves in the mirror
and proudly know that we are the kind of person that can be trusted
to do the right thing. People should admire us and love to be
around us.
There's something really comforting about creating this spiritual
bridge. It reminds you of a higher purpose. It puts your problems
and concerns into a broader context. It helps you grow from your
difficult experiences rather than become hopeless or overwhelmed
by them. Even if you have to do something terribly difficult such
as firing someone, for example, you do so while remembering your
spirituality. Or even if you are fired or have to deal with some
other tremendous hardship, there is a part of you that knows there
is a reason. Having faith in God helps you get through the difficult
times. It gives you confidence in a bigger picture. It doesn't
mean that difficult times become easy--just a little more manageable.
When we can do this the small stuff that we deal with really does
becomes small stuff. Our perspective on the situations we encounter
takes on a spiritual view rather than a worldly one.
III. Ask yourself the question, "Am I making the absolute
best of this moment?"
A very important question that we need to ask ourselves is "Am
I making the absolute best of this moment?" Think about it.
If we make the most of each moment, life has a way of working
itself out.
So often, we spend our moments wishing they were different, complaining, whining, commiserating, or feeling sorry for ourselves. But when we get right down to it, spending our moments in this manner is not only a waste of time, it's counterproductive. One thing that could be helpful is to question yourself in times of stress with, "What am I doing with this moment? Am I focusing on negative, stressful thoughts, or am I spending this moment doing the best I can to come up with the best plan of attack?"
When we do not spend our time thinking about all the things
that bug us, and what's wrong with our lives, we can make
the best of the moment and focus on solutions. Acts 8:27-38,
II Cor. 11:23-31 ,12:7-10
Happy Verses: Psalms 1, 4.