I used a textbook once that talked about relating to others in an office. One danger that the book admonished students to avoid was negative gossip. Obviously, this blog has made similar statements. But, if you're discussing negative gossip, then that brings up the question--what is positive gossip? According to this textbook, positive gossip is telling others about the good things that someone else has done, kind of spreading praise behind someone's back--if a coworker accomplishes something, bragging about him or her to others, or let your supervisor know how easy so-and-so is to work with. This secular textbook described positive gossip as a way to build relationships, to be well-liked by your peers. From a Christian standpoint, this idea of positive gossip shouldn't be anything new. It is spreading joy, using your tongue to bless instead of to curse (James 3:9-12).
The opposite of this is constantly challenging everyone around you, vying for achievements of your own while denegrating those of your colleagues. Be careful about that. That was the same trouble that James and John got into as they asked Jesus to “promote” them ahead of the other disciples.
Be free with your praise of others. Spread the bragging rights around and see what some positive gossip can do for your workplace.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Friday, March 11, 2011
Recognize Others' Accomplishments
Matthew 25: 21, 23
How long has it been since you've recognized the accomplishments of your subordinates? Most of us are quick to correct others' work, but may not be quite as ready with praise. The Bible is replete with instructions about encouraging others (1 Thessalonians 5:11 and Hebrews 3:13 are two examples). One early church missionary was recognized as a "Son of Encouragement" (Barnabas in Acts 4:36). Paul's letters to Timothy and Titus include recognitions of the gifts that each of these subordinates had displayed. But perhaps the best example of a supervisor recognizing subordinates is in Jesus' parable of the talents. The man with 5 talents and the man with 2 talents had worked and earned a 100% return on their masters' investment. The master was quick with praise: "Well done, good and faithful servant...come and share in your masters' happiness." The good work by the servants was followed by praise from their supervisor as well as a promotion/recognition appropriate to their accomplishments.
In this economy, it's hard to give raises and promotions, particularly as many businesses are cutting back. But you can always give recognition to the people around you. Encourage others by showing that you see their value. And brag about their accomplishments to others. You'll be amazed at how hard they continue to work for you. But more than that, you'll be showing Christ's love to them as you encourage.
How long has it been since you've recognized the accomplishments of your subordinates? Most of us are quick to correct others' work, but may not be quite as ready with praise. The Bible is replete with instructions about encouraging others (1 Thessalonians 5:11 and Hebrews 3:13 are two examples). One early church missionary was recognized as a "Son of Encouragement" (Barnabas in Acts 4:36). Paul's letters to Timothy and Titus include recognitions of the gifts that each of these subordinates had displayed. But perhaps the best example of a supervisor recognizing subordinates is in Jesus' parable of the talents. The man with 5 talents and the man with 2 talents had worked and earned a 100% return on their masters' investment. The master was quick with praise: "Well done, good and faithful servant...come and share in your masters' happiness." The good work by the servants was followed by praise from their supervisor as well as a promotion/recognition appropriate to their accomplishments.
In this economy, it's hard to give raises and promotions, particularly as many businesses are cutting back. But you can always give recognition to the people around you. Encourage others by showing that you see their value. And brag about their accomplishments to others. You'll be amazed at how hard they continue to work for you. But more than that, you'll be showing Christ's love to them as you encourage.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Lessons from the First Organization
Genesis 11:1-9
I was reading a book by Myron Rush entitled "Management: A Biblical Approach" last week, and he made a point that had never occurred to me. As far as we know, the first organization in the Bible occurred in the City of Babel as the people were constructing their tower. Sure, there may have been what you might call family businesses before that--farming and herding types of things. And yes, if Noah's sons or neighbors helped him, you could call that an organization. But in terms of explicitly mentioned references to people organizing their labor, the Tower of Babel is the first one in the Bible. A lot of times, we skip over this story on our way from Noah to Abraham, and when we do hear lessons about Babel, it's usually related to pride or to seeking God's will. But Rush explains that there's a lot to learn about running a business in those verses as well.
When you think about it, Babel Construction was an extremely successful company. God didn't say, "well, this isn't going to amount to anything, but let's mess up their language anyway." He said, "nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them." The organization set up by the people of Babel was second to none. What did they have that gave them such potential? Commitment to a goal (verses 3-4), everyone on the same page (verse 6), and effective communication (verses 1, 6). Of course, the thing that ultimately became their downfall was that their goal was not alligned with God. But their potential was tremendous!
There are two points to take away from this story in terms of faith in the workplace. First, as a communication professor, I would be falling down on the job if I didn't point out the importance of good communication. The way God doomed their project was to mess up their communication. He could have brought an earthquake or a hurricane, but instead, he made it difficult for them to talk. Communication is key. Second, and more importantly, you have to be pursuing godly objectives. If your business pursues money above all else, watch out that your tower doesn't fall. James reminds us to keep God at the center of our plans. Proverbs 16:3 explains that we should commit our plans to the Lord, who will make our paths straight. Perhaps even more to the point, unless the Lord is building your house (or business or nonprofit or church), the workers are laboring in vain (Psalm 127:1).
I was reading a book by Myron Rush entitled "Management: A Biblical Approach" last week, and he made a point that had never occurred to me. As far as we know, the first organization in the Bible occurred in the City of Babel as the people were constructing their tower. Sure, there may have been what you might call family businesses before that--farming and herding types of things. And yes, if Noah's sons or neighbors helped him, you could call that an organization. But in terms of explicitly mentioned references to people organizing their labor, the Tower of Babel is the first one in the Bible. A lot of times, we skip over this story on our way from Noah to Abraham, and when we do hear lessons about Babel, it's usually related to pride or to seeking God's will. But Rush explains that there's a lot to learn about running a business in those verses as well.
When you think about it, Babel Construction was an extremely successful company. God didn't say, "well, this isn't going to amount to anything, but let's mess up their language anyway." He said, "nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them." The organization set up by the people of Babel was second to none. What did they have that gave them such potential? Commitment to a goal (verses 3-4), everyone on the same page (verse 6), and effective communication (verses 1, 6). Of course, the thing that ultimately became their downfall was that their goal was not alligned with God. But their potential was tremendous!
There are two points to take away from this story in terms of faith in the workplace. First, as a communication professor, I would be falling down on the job if I didn't point out the importance of good communication. The way God doomed their project was to mess up their communication. He could have brought an earthquake or a hurricane, but instead, he made it difficult for them to talk. Communication is key. Second, and more importantly, you have to be pursuing godly objectives. If your business pursues money above all else, watch out that your tower doesn't fall. James reminds us to keep God at the center of our plans. Proverbs 16:3 explains that we should commit our plans to the Lord, who will make our paths straight. Perhaps even more to the point, unless the Lord is building your house (or business or nonprofit or church), the workers are laboring in vain (Psalm 127:1).
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Do Not Be Yoked with Unbelievers
1 Corinthians 6:14-18
This is a tough passage. Compare any two Bible commentaries on this passage, and you're likely to get at least two positions on its meaning. Part of the confusion stems from the fact that most version of the Bible translate this passage differently. For example, the TEV and Phillips versions specifically talk about not working with an unbeliever. So I want to start by saying that I'm still exploring this passage and this post is not the final answer, by a long shot.
Earlier this month, I wrote about how difficult it would have been for early Christians to do business while not paying homage to Athena or the Roman emperor. That's probably a big part of what Paul had in mind.
But more than that, there's an idea of an unequal partnership here. You wouldn't yoke an ox and a donkey together to plow your field. The animals would move at different paces, pulling different amounts, and they'd probably hurt themselves and definitely wouldn't get your field plowed. The same is true for partnerships between Christians and nonChristians. This passage is often applied to marriages, cautioning young Christians to focus on courting only other believers. But I think this idea of equal partnerships also applies to the workplace. A believer and a nonbeliever see the world in fundamentally different ways. Even a nonbeliever who can admit that serving others is a good idea or that maybe the bottom line shouldn't be the ultimate goal is still a long way from acknowledging God as master of the universe and Jesus as His Son. If you believe that your faith should directly influence who you are at work (which is the point of this blog), then you have to acknowledge the difficulties inherent in partnering with people who see the world in very different ways.
I don't think that means that you can't have any workplace contact with nonbelievers. If you look at the Greek words that Paul uses, they are words that refer to casual relationships. In each instance, the words refer to partnerships where there is a heavy degree of mutual dependence. According to this passage, these are the relationships to avoid--those that put a believer in a position of dependence on someone who has different values and a very different way of approaching existence.
So what to do? How do you function in our heavily interdependent society and not form partnerships with nonbelievers? I have to confess that I don't know. I work with and for people who do not seem to be Christians. I am dependent on them in many ways. Similarly, I've worked with others on projects when I'm not sure about the religious values of the other person. So I don't know what to do about this passage or how to handle workplace connections with nonbelievers. It's something that I am continuing to think about.
This is a tough passage. Compare any two Bible commentaries on this passage, and you're likely to get at least two positions on its meaning. Part of the confusion stems from the fact that most version of the Bible translate this passage differently. For example, the TEV and Phillips versions specifically talk about not working with an unbeliever. So I want to start by saying that I'm still exploring this passage and this post is not the final answer, by a long shot.
Earlier this month, I wrote about how difficult it would have been for early Christians to do business while not paying homage to Athena or the Roman emperor. That's probably a big part of what Paul had in mind.
But more than that, there's an idea of an unequal partnership here. You wouldn't yoke an ox and a donkey together to plow your field. The animals would move at different paces, pulling different amounts, and they'd probably hurt themselves and definitely wouldn't get your field plowed. The same is true for partnerships between Christians and nonChristians. This passage is often applied to marriages, cautioning young Christians to focus on courting only other believers. But I think this idea of equal partnerships also applies to the workplace. A believer and a nonbeliever see the world in fundamentally different ways. Even a nonbeliever who can admit that serving others is a good idea or that maybe the bottom line shouldn't be the ultimate goal is still a long way from acknowledging God as master of the universe and Jesus as His Son. If you believe that your faith should directly influence who you are at work (which is the point of this blog), then you have to acknowledge the difficulties inherent in partnering with people who see the world in very different ways.
I don't think that means that you can't have any workplace contact with nonbelievers. If you look at the Greek words that Paul uses, they are words that refer to casual relationships. In each instance, the words refer to partnerships where there is a heavy degree of mutual dependence. According to this passage, these are the relationships to avoid--those that put a believer in a position of dependence on someone who has different values and a very different way of approaching existence.
So what to do? How do you function in our heavily interdependent society and not form partnerships with nonbelievers? I have to confess that I don't know. I work with and for people who do not seem to be Christians. I am dependent on them in many ways. Similarly, I've worked with others on projects when I'm not sure about the religious values of the other person. So I don't know what to do about this passage or how to handle workplace connections with nonbelievers. It's something that I am continuing to think about.
Monday, March 7, 2011
How to Survive Differentness
On Friday, I wrote about how difficult it was for early Christians to work. Because they wouldn't pay homage to the patron Greek or Roman god of their city, they were excluded from much of the economic, political, and social life of their society. How did they deal with that kind of exclusion? They clung to each other. In Acts 2:42-47, Acts 4:32-36, and a number of other passages describing early Christians, the Bible talks about how they stuck together and depended on each other and on God. Archeological evidence has revealed meeting rooms where Christians assembled. These Christians knew that they couldn't make it on their own, that they had to support each other.
So two questions. First, how are you doing being different? If you're doing it right, you probably need support from others. That may not be monetary support--it may simply be encouragement to continue living for Christ. Second, how are we doing supporting each other? It's tempting to show up on Sundays, say "hi" to everyone, and then leave that community behind as we join our "Monday" community. That's not the support we need to live for Christ in our workplaces. We need the freedom to be authentic, to be able to say, "I'm struggling with what it means to be Christ at work." Pride sometimes gets in our way, that feeling like we have to show people we have it all together. Sometimes business interferes as well, when we don't have time to really listen to people and get to know their needs. But to be truly different, to really reflect Christ at work requires a support community of fellow Christians.
To find that kind of support from others, we first need to be that kind of support. Talk to someone in need today. Find out how you can be someone's support. You'll soon find that you've got others around you, ready for when you need the support.
So two questions. First, how are you doing being different? If you're doing it right, you probably need support from others. That may not be monetary support--it may simply be encouragement to continue living for Christ. Second, how are we doing supporting each other? It's tempting to show up on Sundays, say "hi" to everyone, and then leave that community behind as we join our "Monday" community. That's not the support we need to live for Christ in our workplaces. We need the freedom to be authentic, to be able to say, "I'm struggling with what it means to be Christ at work." Pride sometimes gets in our way, that feeling like we have to show people we have it all together. Sometimes business interferes as well, when we don't have time to really listen to people and get to know their needs. But to be truly different, to really reflect Christ at work requires a support community of fellow Christians.
To find that kind of support from others, we first need to be that kind of support. Talk to someone in need today. Find out how you can be someone's support. You'll soon find that you've got others around you, ready for when you need the support.
Friday, March 4, 2011
To Whom Do You Pay Homage?
In ancient Greek and Roman cities, as you entered the Agora or marketplace to do business, you passed an altar. You were expected to take incense and pay homage to the god of that city, whether Athena or Zeus or whomever. And the manager of the marketplace greeted people, probably paying attention to who came to do business in his market. Failing to pay homage to the god was considered a serious offense and would probably get you thrown out, unable to sell whatever it was you came to sell. So imagine the dilemma for early Christians. If they made the decision to follow Christ, they couldn't pay tribute to another god. They really stood out as different, and in many cases, it meant that they could no longer buy and sell goods in the market. For these Christians, the decision to follow Christ meant a fundamental change in the way they worked.
This raises an important question for us in our workplaces. To whom do we pay homage as we go to work? I don't know of anyone who burns incense to Zeus, but I wonder if there are not things that we do to honor the "gods" of our age. Perhaps you throw incense on the altar of careerism. Or maybe it's the altar of your self-worth being measured by accomplishments or status or gossip/sarcasm/course language around a water cooler. As a Christian, you have the opportunity to really stand out for Christ by not paying homage to these gods. It won't be easy. People may make fun of you, they may criticize you. You may lose business, lose promotions, or lose your job completely. But being a Christian means being different than others in the workplace.
This raises an important question for us in our workplaces. To whom do we pay homage as we go to work? I don't know of anyone who burns incense to Zeus, but I wonder if there are not things that we do to honor the "gods" of our age. Perhaps you throw incense on the altar of careerism. Or maybe it's the altar of your self-worth being measured by accomplishments or status or gossip/sarcasm/course language around a water cooler. As a Christian, you have the opportunity to really stand out for Christ by not paying homage to these gods. It won't be easy. People may make fun of you, they may criticize you. You may lose business, lose promotions, or lose your job completely. But being a Christian means being different than others in the workplace.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Christ's Ambassadors
2 Corinthians 5:16-20
We hear a lot about ambassadors from this country or that country, but have you really thought about what ambassadors do? Essentially, an ambassador enables a country to have a close presence with another country. The ambassador represents the interests of his/her home country while living in a foreign land with foreign people.
That description may be what Paul had in mind as he explained to the Corinthian Christians that they were ambassadors for Christ. Think about that for a moment. We're citizens of heaven (Philippians 3:20). But we are residents on earth. As ambassadors, Christians represent the interests of our King in this foreign land. Which is why Paul said that "from now on, we regard no one from a worldly point of view" in verse 16. We need to see the people around us from a heavenly perspective. Why? Because God has reconciled us through Christ and He wants others to know that this reconciliation is both possible and necessary (verses 18-19). In our role as ambassadors, God is making His appeal to the world through us.
Don't underestimate what that means. Everyone watches what an ambassador does. Because he/she represents another country, an ambassador's actions have far-reaching consequences. If he or she messes up, people see it and make assumptions about the home country. How you act at work is very similar. People are watching. You have the opportunity to be God's appeal to the world!
We hear a lot about ambassadors from this country or that country, but have you really thought about what ambassadors do? Essentially, an ambassador enables a country to have a close presence with another country. The ambassador represents the interests of his/her home country while living in a foreign land with foreign people.
That description may be what Paul had in mind as he explained to the Corinthian Christians that they were ambassadors for Christ. Think about that for a moment. We're citizens of heaven (Philippians 3:20). But we are residents on earth. As ambassadors, Christians represent the interests of our King in this foreign land. Which is why Paul said that "from now on, we regard no one from a worldly point of view" in verse 16. We need to see the people around us from a heavenly perspective. Why? Because God has reconciled us through Christ and He wants others to know that this reconciliation is both possible and necessary (verses 18-19). In our role as ambassadors, God is making His appeal to the world through us.
Don't underestimate what that means. Everyone watches what an ambassador does. Because he/she represents another country, an ambassador's actions have far-reaching consequences. If he or she messes up, people see it and make assumptions about the home country. How you act at work is very similar. People are watching. You have the opportunity to be God's appeal to the world!
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