In any job, you need the right tools to be successful. Your faith and mind-set are vital for success because your job is not without its challenges. When you decide to do things God’s way, you must be faithful to God’s Word. His ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:8–9), but they are not always the easiest ways to follow.
The problem is that we tend to “separate the sacred from the secular.” Faith is not one of the required attributes of the job but as Christians, it is required for us to succeed. As a faith-filled woman in the workplace, you most likely will be tested and tried, and you must evaluate if are you ready for the challenge. Are you ready to handle the various work challenges and situations and do things God’s way instead of the world’s way?
Challenges come in many shapes and sizes. One common challenge is getting along with your peers and your boss. You may have a boss who is brilliant but moody, angry, or paranoid about everything—including any potential of your rising the corporate ladder above them. Being faithful means being “firm in adherence to promises or in observance of duty.” Faithfulness as a Christian woman means being faithful in studying, listening, and acting in situations according to God’s Word.
The easy way is to respond in anger and frustration toward a difficult boss or situation or to complain about your situation. God has a better plan. Stand strong in your faith because faith is not just a tool, it is the foundation that will drive your success. Christian women must use faith to see fruitfulness and success.
I once worked for a verbally abusive boss, and during one of my most difficult seasons with him, my mother-in-law—my mentor in the faith—saw how desperate I was for an answer to my situation. She gave me a set of messages that changed everything for me: Honor’s Reward by John Bevere. I thank God for imparting this teaching into my life at the perfect time. He teaches that once you understand God’s system of honor in every relationship, you will receive the reward (fruitfulness) of that honor. God’s Word says, “He who receives and welcomes a prophet because he is a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward, and he who receives a righteous (honorable) man because he is a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward” (Matt. 10:41 AMP). This means to honor every relationship, and that includes work relationships.
God is a God of organization and authority. In fact, God has designed a system of honor for all relationships. God values the positions of authority in your life and there is a reward (fruitfulness) when you honor those relationships.
What does this mean for you and your difficult boss, coworkers or employees? It means that you honor the position in authority regardless of the person. You might think, “But how can I honor the position when the person doesn’t deserve my honor or respect?” Think about David before he became King of Israel. King Saul was so jealous of David that he pursued him to kill him. However, when David had the chance to kill Saul, he did not. David knew the divine authority vested in King Saul, and David would not dishonor God by dishonoring His appointed servant (1 Sam. 24:8–13). This is an extreme example of honor, but it is key to walking in the fruit of the Spirit. God requires us to honor and respect the position of authority—even if they don’t deserve it. Why? Because God’s instruction is that we “show respect for all people [treat them honorably], love the brotherhood [of believers], fear God, honor the king” (1 Pet. 2:17 AMP). Honor in this context means “a showing of usually merited respect.”
Jesus says, “First and most importantly seek (aim at, strive after) His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of doing and being right—the attitude and character of God], and all these things [fruit] will be given to you also” (Matt: 6:33 AMP). Your action step is to seek God early and often by praying for and blessing your boss and coworkers because of the honor and respect that God demands for those in authority over you, and for those under you or beside you. The Word doesn’t say that you only honor your boss and coworkers if they treat you well. It says to respect (honor) every person. You honor someone by honoring their position and praying for blessing and wisdom for them. This also extends to the decisions they make. The world says you are right to respond in anger or to complain to your human resource department about a boss that is not honorable toward you and that you are completely justified in doing so. However, I encourage you to wait and decide to go God’s way first. Be patient in the situation and trust Him. You must establish a habit of going to your prayer closet to bless your boss continually until there is a shift in the situation.
God’s Word says, “Therefore be patient, brethren [sisters], until the coming of the Lord. See the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain” (Jas. 5:7 NKJV; emphasis added). Precious fruit is not to be harvested before all the preparation is complete in choosing the right soil; in tilling, pruning, and watering; and in waiting patiently for the beautiful fruit to arrive. Likewise, you must learn to be patient in seeing changes in your relationship with your boss and peers. Stephen R. Covey wrote one of the best-selling self-help books of all time, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. In the book, Habit #3 is to “put first things first,” which Covey viewed as “personal fruit.” We can be more effective as Christians if we make a priority and habit of going to our prayer closet to pray and bless those with whom we are in strife.
Through struggle and prayer, I was able to build an honorable relationship with my boss. A few years after I decided to follow God’s system of honor with my boss, my husband and I decided that it was time for me to take a different direction, which was for me to be at home with our son. As a testament to God’s fruitfulness, I was very sad to leave my company and the relationship I had established with my boss. On my exit, the human resources department asked me how I managed to change my relationship with my superior as no one else had managed to break through with him. I explained that I decided to follow God’s way of honoring and respecting my boss’s position and authority, and that changed our relationship. I smiled as I explained this because God truly showed me His faithfulness.
Trust that God’s ways will always bring you the greatest fruit of the harvest so you can “taste and see that the Lord is good!” (Ps. 34:8).
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