Which Type of Christian Are We at Work?

For a while now, I have been trying to settle down with my internship and trying to work out a new balance in my life. I never knew that work could drain me of that much of my energy. On top of work, I really like meeting people during the weekdays and have been packing myself with different appointments.  As a result, I did not have much energy to go about blogging and find myself coming home completely exhausted with little energy to exercise.

I am currently nearing the end of my 3rd week of internship and must comment on how fast time flies. In this short period of internship, I must say the learning curve is pretty steep. However, I found that to be pretty exciting for me as everyday demands something very different out of me - the meticulous, the creative, the courageous, and the humble. I find myself enjoying this challenge and have been very motivated by it.

A good friend of mine has been praying alongside me with regards to my internship and recently, she sent me a pretty good read. It was a short excerpt about workplace ministry and in it reveals the 4 Types of Christians in workplace:

1. A Christian who simply tries to survive in the workplace
2. A Christian who applies biblical principles in the workplace
3. A Christian who works in the power of the Holy Spirit
4. A Christian who transforms his or her workplace for Christ

I began to ask myself which did I fall under. In my 3 weeks of internship so far, I realised I have been trying my best to be No. 1 and No. 2. And even that is not easy at all. Working and the demands and expectations of my current job is pretty new to me and being able to survive in itself can sometimes be an achievement. In work, the truth is no one is as forgiving whenever a mistake is made and each piece of work that goes out requires a great deal of perfection. Even as I struggle through the demands, I tried conscientiously to apply what I have learnt from the bible to the workplace and some verses that kept me grounded were:

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. -Colossians 3:23-24

For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. -2 Timothy 1:7

And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. -Colossians 1:9-10

Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good ... Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. -1 Peter 2:13, 18

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. -Galatians 5:22-23

The short excerpt continues on with 5 important areas to look into if you want to be the 4th type of Christian at work - one who transforms the workplace and I know deep in my heart that was what I have been wanting to be.

1. Developing work competence
I always believe that the ability of influence first begins with a level of competence respected by others. I myself look up to people who are competent and yet extremely God-fearing.

2. Establishing integrity at work
This would also mean to never compromise on biblical principles and be very conscientious of it daily.

3. Cultivate the skill of time management
Work is often almost 24/7 in Singapore and many parts of the world. Especially in the realm of PR, there is so much to do but yet I realised that it is possible to be efficient in a short period of time. And that is possible with goals and priorities set in place. It is true that work expands to fill the amount of time allocated to it. If I think of work 24/7, there is honestly nothing else I could be doing - which may not be helpful if I want to do more than being a worker at work.

4. Work on conflict resolution intentionally
Conflict is inevitable when many people work together and to learn to resolve it effectively. Most of the time, I see people looking at how I react during conflicts as opposed to what I would be doing during good times. I believe that in the midst of a conflict, you have the greatest power to bring a change.

5. Cope with work-related stress with godly disposition
There are many ways of coping with stress and not all are biblically wise. This has been something that I have been growing in and learning that there is no one else but God to look to in times of stress. Recently, I have been trying to discern from a web of information and opinions given to me. With knowledge comes discernment and wisdom as not all knowledge is necessarily helpful and the new knowledge given stressed me as I knew not what to do with and about it.

Wanting to make a change is an easier first step but to pull through it requires a great deal of faith and trust in the Lord for I know that I can't do it on my own and would be discouraged many times along the way. I still remembered that many weeks ago, I sought to make a difference in my life and at work. I know that I did not want to settle with being No. 1 nor 2. It is my desire to work towards being No. 3 & 4.  But I trust that God is faithful and has been faithful and will mold me to be that change maker. Initially, I believed my 3rd week would be terrible but God has blessed me so much and continued to give me many opportunities to learn. I also believe that the reason why I enjoyed work more was because of a perspective change and being more prayerful (praying in all circumstance) everyday this week.

I'm so thankful that God gave me a little boost just when I need it (I'll blog about it soon.) by giving me many people to encourage and pray for me. So far, many have come up to me to encourage me and told me that they believed that I could make a difference for God in the workplace. A great reminder as I continue working is to work with all my heart, remembering that everything I do is for the Lord.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. 

- Colossians 3:23-24