Oops, maybe I shouldn't remind us of this on Friday, but we shouldn't shrink back from the truth. A Friday dawns at work and you are ready to clean up the place for the weekend, but here comes the boss. "Would you follow me, please." Uh, oh, very formal, no name, and a please that isn't really a please in the polite request sense of the word. Your spirits fall to the earth with a crash as you wonder what happened or what you possibly did. In the office, the boss unloads a ton of grief and shame on you for something that seemed kind of small at the time. A split-second decision that you didn't have time to consult with anyone before giving the go ahead. A push out to public view of something that turned out to be not quite ready for prime time. Whatever the case, you did it, and the damage was not that great, but... the boss gives you the blunt end of her wrath as though you brought down the company in one final stroke. 'Drag the corpse out' the boss says in so many words, as he unloads all of his fury on your little head. Most bosses aren't that literary, but you cannot be sure if he means to execute you on the spot or that you've killed the company. Why on a Friday?
Now, your weekend is ruined. You have no chance to work on fixing things until Monday. All of your weekend plans will be shot as you worry and fret over the termination of the affair. The boss never said the words, but is your job on the block? Should you spend the weekend polishing your resume? Actually, perhaps the boss is just a coward in this case. The damage truly wasn't that great, but she feared the confrontation and put it off until procrastination began to make her look bad in her own perfectionist eyes. The 'man' may have feared making the phone call to bring you onto the carpet because "phonephobia" caused him to shuffle the necessary dressing down to the bottom of his to do list until the event loomed larger in his mind than it really was. Or, perhaps the problem got worse due to his inability to act and now he takes out his own share of the blame on you as well. It is unfair, but you had to take it or forfeit your job in a tough economy. What we tend to do is to apply some derogatory label to the boss and forget the human part.
Believer or secular, saved or sinner, we all have worries and fears that cause us to act in the wrong way at times. In a small shop you may not notice, but in four years of military service and nearly 20 with a large corporation, I saw many people act differently at work than in their homes. Bosses in particular seem to put on a suit of imaginary armor when going to work. In the days when I had a crew of ten working for me, I did that very thing. I wanted to be the perfect boss to the men (no women on the dock crew at that time) and I feared being caught in the wrong. The higher up on the food chain a boss sits, the greater the fear of appearing stupid or ignorant. Yet, the same forces are at war within them as with anyone else. We may call it good and evil, the good nature or the bad, or caricature it with a little angel and devil figures but it works out to the same battle. What is the difference for the person saved by Jesus?
Ah, now we get down to it. For the secular sinner the battle is already lost. For the sinner who repents and believes in Jesus, the battle is already won. However, for the both the battle will go on in this lifetime. In our case, the Holy Spirit comes into the house to take charge. Though it may seem at times that nothing has changed, there is a new master in the house and the cleanup is well underway. For the person depending only upon their so-called better nature, sin is still the slave owner living on the top floor of the house. To the person receiving the chewing out on that Friday, the difference may be impossible to discern. Christian or not, we all still have the capability to act badly and come down too hard when coaching and counselling are the better answers. If you are the person on the receiving end, this is the time to turn the other cheek and forgive. This may not be the time to speak up for yourself. Sometimes the sheep is silent before the shearer. Your best defense may be to trust in Christ Jesus and wait out the storm. Hard to do? You bet it is. Jesus did it before the Roman governor, and laid down his life for us. He knows the strength you need for this very situation.
Bucky
No comments:
Post a Comment