12 timeless truths to help you be a better employee
Ali Stigall
It wasn’t an easy decision to leave my job; I loved my coworkers and my clients. However, the Lord had been telling me for awhile that it was time.
Looking back, I wonder what taste I left in everyone’s mouth when I left. I’d spent 40 hours a week with these people. I hoped I was just as much of a Christian at work as I was at church or at home. I’d always considered myself a good employee, but what did everyone else think?
What legacy did I leave behind? Do they remember me as a good worker? As a loud mouth? An honest person or a lazy colleague?
Would they hire me again? And, did I take opportunities to share my faith in Jesus?
The Bible has a lot to say about how we conduct ourselves professionally:
- “But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works” (James 2:18).
- “Commit your work to the Lord and your plans will be established” (Proverbs 16:3).
- “Whoever is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys” (Proverbs 18:9).
- “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need” (Ephesians 4:28).
The average person works nine hours a day. During that time, we project an image of who we are to fellow employees, employers, clients, customers, and patients. We tend to think that who we are at work is separate from who we are after 5 o’clock.
This concept is not wrong. There should be an expectation of professionalism in a workplace. But how we work can also be a reflection of our faith. The way we perform our jobs and how we treat others is an opportunity to exemplify Jesus.
12 Timeless Truths to Help You Be a Better Coworker
1. Give your best effort; don’t just get a job done. This shows integrity.
2. Stay away from water cooler gossip. Remember that what you say about others says more about you than it does about them.
3. Be honest. Own your mistakes and offer corrections.
4. Spend your paycheck responsibly. Look at it this way: What we have is a blessing from God to manage.
5. Keep a joy-filled spirit. No one will believe you’re a Christ follower (or want to become one) if you are in a bad mood or complain all the time.
6. Invite others to church. A thread of commonality has already been established which can lead to deeper conversations. That creates an opportunity to respectfully share the Gospel.
7. Embrace the awkward. Crossing the threshold from superficial to intimate can be uncomfortable at first but the rewards can be rich.
8. Treat everyone with equal respect and kindness, from the janitor to the CEO.
9. Offer help generously. Saved people serve people, even when we’re not at church.
10. Keep your emotional junk at home. It’s one thing to ask for prayer, but it’s another to constantly spew drama. If you’re having a hard time, seek solace in God’s Word.
11. Watch your mouth. This may be the hardest because it is easy to get wrapped up in office gossip. However, once you are saved by God’s grace, you are no longer of this world.
12. Give credit to the Lord, as all of our abilities are gifts from Him.
Colossians 3:17 says, “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” Rather than working for a paycheck, our motivation to work hard is to please the Lord. As we do, our hearts align with His and our behavior reflects His character.