Integrity in Your WorkplaceSýnishorn

Take a Stand for Righteousness

Reading

James 4:17 [ESV] So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

Isaiah 1:17(a) [NKJV] Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor;

Psalm 121:1-2 [NKJV] I will lift up my eyes to the hills—From whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

Reflection

I spent two hours on the phone the other day with a non-Christian friend of many years. He was in a situation of workplace retaliation. His union abandoned him, workplace “friends” abandoned him, and he had lost his home to pay legal fees. In the end, he was completely cleared by the courts and ordered to be fully reinstated to his former rank with tenure intact.

However, the emotional and psychological toll has been devastating. He cannot sue for compensation or recoup legal fees because he was never actually fired. Yet he says the hardest was the loss of people who he thought were his friends. They abandoned him in his time of need. My heart went out to him and his family.

Many years ago, I watched a colleague at my place of work in a similar situation. He was a friend, not close, but a friend. I was faced with a choice. Do I stand by and keep my head down or do I take a stand for Righteousness? I was young in my career and maybe a bit naïve about the ways of the world, but I took a stand. I was amazed once I did others began to do the same. My employer was forced to clear my colleague of ridiculous charges.

Six months later, however, I began to understand the cost of my choice to take a stand for Righteousness. The retaliation against me was ruthless. This time there was no one willing to take a stand for Righteousness. In the end, however, God was on my side, and I was delivered from the situation.

This is what I learned from these situations: People are weak; our God is strong. It is not about what others do, it is about what we do; the choices we make. Our God made the Heavens and the Earth; do you honestly think He cannot deliver you from your situation? When it comes time to take a stand for Righteousness, are you willing to trust God has your back and is your True Friend who will never let you down?

As a Christian, you represent the Righteousness of Christ in your workplace. It is your job today to trust in Him, and Him alone.

Can you trust your God?

Prayer

Lord, help me always remember to trust You for my deliverance. Help me take a stand for Righteousness and be the Light of Christ no matter the personal cost to me or my career. You are my Friend in time of need. I will trust in You. In Jesus’ Name, I pray. Amen.

Kevin Cooney