What does it look like to live out your faith at work? It’s a challenging question. I’ve thought about it plenty. I’ve talked about it one-on-one countless times. This is the first time I’ve written about it on my leadership blog.

Today is Good Friday, one of the most significant Christian holidays. I figured, if I can’t write about my Christian faith on a day like today, then I never will. So, here it goes.

Faith is personal. Jesus Christ came into my life when I was a teenager. Back then, I was self-centered, cynical, and angry. Through a church youth ministry, I met Jesus and experienced his love and forgiveness. I gave my life to him and haven’t been the same since.

That’s all fine and dandy, but what does that have to do with work? Should I compartmentalize my faith, and leave it on the shelf during the week, only to bring it out on Sundays? No, that’s not how it works.

I don’t claim to have all the answers. I’m not the perfect Christian. I still fail and need His grace every day. Yet, it’s been 28 years since I gave my life to Christ. I’ve been working professionally for 24 of those years. Here are the lessons I’ve learned so far:

Be an excellent worker

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” – Colossians 3:23-24

Simply put, it all starts with being a fantastic employee. There’s no better way to live out your faith at work. If you can’t do that, nothing else I write here matters. Christians should have a reputation for being the best workers on the planet.

Be easy to work with

“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” – Romans 12:18

While some have careers where they work in isolation, most of us work with other people. Those other people tend to generate conflict. It happens. The question is, what’s your role in it? Christians living out their faith at work should be peacemakers. Those of us who receive grace and reconciliation from God should be the first to extend it to others.

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” – Colossians 3:13

It’s not easy, but it is necessary.

Love and care for others

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” – John 13:34-35

Life is hard. Work is hard. People experience trauma outside of the workplace, then come to work. People experience intense stress at work and need help dealing with it. Will you be the one to share your co-worker’s burden? What steps are you taking to make yourself approachable and available to others in distress? We live in a broken world and people are hurting. Those who call themselves Christians should always be ready to care for those around them.

Lead like Christ

This is a leadership blog. I often write about servant leadership. As far as I’m concerned, Jesus invented it.

“Jesus called them together and said, ‘You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’” – Mark 10:42-45

We all know people who love their authority and “lord it over” others. As Jesus said, “not so with you.” As Christian leaders, we lead by serving. I’ve written plenty about that already. If you want to learn more about servant leadership, start here.

Leading in the world

As a leader in the workplace, I get to lead Christians and non-Christians. Some believe in the Bible, while others want nothing to do with it. That’s perfectly fine with me. I love working with everyone. I want everyone to feel included. I never expect non-Christians to act like Christians. In fact, Christians, myself included, have a hard enough time adhering to our principles, all on our own. Therefore, I do not judge.

As a person of authority and faith in the workplace, I often need to walk a fine line. On one hand, I need to live out my faith. On the other hand, I need to make everyone feel included. Some may conclude that this means I should stay silent about my faith, but I think that’s a mistake and an outdated opinion.

Inclusion today means bringing your whole self to work. People are looking to be led by leaders who are authentic and open about their personalities, beliefs, passions, and causes. By sharing what I’ve shared, I lead by example and make it safe for others to express themselves too. This is a net positive for corporate culture.

Before I wrote this article, I conducted a little experiment. Inspired by my friend, Mike Ebbers, I posted a brief spiritual message on LinkedIn on Palm Sunday. To my surprise, I received a significant amount of engagement on the post. That told me that people out here in workland are looking for a spiritual connection. They are looking for leaders that are willing to wear their faith on their sleeve. Even if just a little bit.

Being a Christian at work can feel lonely and isolating, but that’s just an illusion. There are more of us than we think. We’d probably feel less alone if we each found a small way to show our faith every so often and make connections.

At this point in the article, I usually beseech my readers with key takeaways and action items. For this topic, I’m going to leave that up to you. This is my faith. This is how I think about integrating my identity as a Christ-follower into my daily work. For you, it may look different.

For the Christians out there in my audience, I hope you have a solemn Good Friday observance today and a joyous resurrection celebration on Sunday.

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