Forgiveness At WorkSýnishorn

God will protect you if conflict resolution doesn’t work

No matter how diligently you follow Jesus’ advice for troubleshooting conflict, it might not work. The person who hurt you may deny wrongdoing, or if you are the person who caused the hurt, the one you hurt may not accept your attempt to resolve the conflict. He or she may not want to reconcile and may even repeat the hurtful words or behavior.

Unless you are willing and able to find another workplace, you may have to continue working with this nonbeliever. In this case, you have an opportunity to be “a light” to them, as described in Acts 13:47. This may be as simple as demonstrating Jesus’ value at work by modeling honesty and strong work ethic. Or you can show kindness to them even when they treat you unfairly. Listen intently instead of displaying anger. Pray for them. All this shines a light on their own bad behavior, and points to God as the inspiration for your better attitude.

On the other hand, you may decide it is best to remove yourself from a bad working situation, if you’re able. For Cerys, separating herself from her company was the right step to getting to a place of forgiveness. “I think China was the tipping point to me saying, ‘I don't want to be in this working environment anymore where things aren't clarified and you don't value work that I'm doing.’" 

Cerys was only able to let go of her anger after she had left the toxic work environment. “It took leaving—no longer being in the environment. There's no more anger anymore.”

Whether or not you have the option to leave your job, you can trust God to be with you in the problems you face at work. You are who God says you are, not whatever an abusive boss says about you. God will go with you wherever you go—even into a hostile work environment. After all, God “commanded” some people to work amongst the Gentiles. If you cannot escape a bad workplace, God may be calling you to be a light to other people there.

Prayer: God, help me know when and how to be a light to others in my workplace, or when and how to leave. Amen.