Four Manly Actions to Take Today to Reflect Christ at Work
Let's recap what we've been talking about since Easter.
We rose with Christ. We're not just renewed in our faith: we're new men, as St Paul has called us. We've tried to talk about just what this means, especially how we can apply our "new-man-ness" at work.
Last week we capped our discussion by getting right down to the nitty-gritty. We identified exactly what we need to do to be authentically new: imitate Christ. We talked a bit about why it's essential for us to imitate Christ in our lives, and how this should make a difference in our work (HERE and HERE). As the Easter Season draws to a close this Thursday, Ascension Thursday, let's wrap up our discussion by looking at four specific manly actions we can take today - and everyday - to really reflect Christ at work. For these we look back to Father Zimpfer's comments last week.
Fight for truth as Jesus lived and fought for it.
Maybe the idea of fighting for truth at work seems exaggerated or overwrought at first glance. Heck, it's all I can do to keep up with the demands of my job day to day, never mind engaging in some sort of "fight" for "truth as Jesus lived it." My daily work isn't some sort of Crusade. I'm not being asked to face lions in the Colosseum.
And yet, while no one's confronting me demanding that I deny Christ by burning incense or sacrificing to the gods, I may be called to fight for truth as Jesus lived and fought for it. To start understanding this, I remind myself that it's not a stretch to think this. Remembering that Jesus Christ is the living Truth, I realize that I may be asked or pushed in some way to deny Him by somehow compromising the truth.
For example, honesty in the marketplace isn't always a given. The Father of Lies convinces many of us to gloss over the truth. It frequently starts with so-called "white lies," defined as "a minor or unimportant lie uttered in the interests of tact or politeness." While I'm not sure how one can call a lie "unimportant," I do know that unless we square up and admit that a lie is a lie, inevitably our lies become more "important." Be vigilant. Don't minimize any lie, of whatever size or shape. They're ugly even when they're small.
In the world of commerce, advertising can serve as a medium for lies. Sometimes it's done on a massive scale, like the tobacco industries decades of falsifying the facts about cigarette smoking. But while many ads don't explicitly lie, claims are made that a product does this or that, when in fact it sometimes does, or does for some people under certain circumstances. I see this almost every day. Being a small business owner, I'm subjected to streams of claims from those who would help me build my business. I assure you most of the claims made, while they may have succeeded in helping someone, at some time, in some way, are generally - to put it mildly - exaggerated.
While much advertising focuses on getting you to do something - whether that something really benefits you or not - by using persuasive "techniques," it doesn't have to be that way. Years ago I read a book about the use of persuasion in marketing. So many of the author's recommendations boiled down to manipulating your prospect in some manner so that they would be more likely to buy what you had to offer. It didn't matter what "it" was. Use these techniques and you'll increase sales. The book left my uneasy (which is why I'm not telling you the title of it).
While you likely can't successfully market your business or sell your products and services without pointing out the features and benefits of the products or services you offer your customers and clients, be forthright in what you say about it and how you present it. Apply this diligently when you're trying to gain new customers or new business with existing customers.
So there's one area of our daily work that immediately engages many of us in the fight for truth. Other areas would be your interactions with your boss and with your colleagues. Think about those. Are you always straightforward and honest in your interactions throughout the day? If not, why not?
Okay, we made a start. We'll have more to say about these four manly actions to take to reflect Christ at work. For now, apply what we've learned today.
We rose with Christ. We're not just renewed in our faith: we're new men, as St Paul has called us. We've tried to talk about just what this means, especially how we can apply our "new-man-ness" at work.
Last week we capped our discussion by getting right down to the nitty-gritty. We identified exactly what we need to do to be authentically new: imitate Christ. We talked a bit about why it's essential for us to imitate Christ in our lives, and how this should make a difference in our work (HERE and HERE). As the Easter Season draws to a close this Thursday, Ascension Thursday, let's wrap up our discussion by looking at four specific manly actions we can take today - and everyday - to really reflect Christ at work. For these we look back to Father Zimpfer's comments last week.
- Fight for truth as Jesus lived and fought for it.
- Attack ignorance and sham as he attacked it, with no complacence in our own superiority, seeing the difference between the sinner and the sin.
- Develop courage and fearlessness in facing the harshness of men and their deep selfishness, seeing them as ignorant rather than as malicious.
- Seek to acquire some of Our Lord's patience and kindness, His charity and tolerance, His understanding and gentleness.
Fight for truth as Jesus lived and fought for it.
Maybe the idea of fighting for truth at work seems exaggerated or overwrought at first glance. Heck, it's all I can do to keep up with the demands of my job day to day, never mind engaging in some sort of "fight" for "truth as Jesus lived it." My daily work isn't some sort of Crusade. I'm not being asked to face lions in the Colosseum.
And yet, while no one's confronting me demanding that I deny Christ by burning incense or sacrificing to the gods, I may be called to fight for truth as Jesus lived and fought for it. To start understanding this, I remind myself that it's not a stretch to think this. Remembering that Jesus Christ is the living Truth, I realize that I may be asked or pushed in some way to deny Him by somehow compromising the truth.
For example, honesty in the marketplace isn't always a given. The Father of Lies convinces many of us to gloss over the truth. It frequently starts with so-called "white lies," defined as "a minor or unimportant lie uttered in the interests of tact or politeness." While I'm not sure how one can call a lie "unimportant," I do know that unless we square up and admit that a lie is a lie, inevitably our lies become more "important." Be vigilant. Don't minimize any lie, of whatever size or shape. They're ugly even when they're small.
In the world of commerce, advertising can serve as a medium for lies. Sometimes it's done on a massive scale, like the tobacco industries decades of falsifying the facts about cigarette smoking. But while many ads don't explicitly lie, claims are made that a product does this or that, when in fact it sometimes does, or does for some people under certain circumstances. I see this almost every day. Being a small business owner, I'm subjected to streams of claims from those who would help me build my business. I assure you most of the claims made, while they may have succeeded in helping someone, at some time, in some way, are generally - to put it mildly - exaggerated.
While much advertising focuses on getting you to do something - whether that something really benefits you or not - by using persuasive "techniques," it doesn't have to be that way. Years ago I read a book about the use of persuasion in marketing. So many of the author's recommendations boiled down to manipulating your prospect in some manner so that they would be more likely to buy what you had to offer. It didn't matter what "it" was. Use these techniques and you'll increase sales. The book left my uneasy (which is why I'm not telling you the title of it).
While you likely can't successfully market your business or sell your products and services without pointing out the features and benefits of the products or services you offer your customers and clients, be forthright in what you say about it and how you present it. Apply this diligently when you're trying to gain new customers or new business with existing customers.
So there's one area of our daily work that immediately engages many of us in the fight for truth. Other areas would be your interactions with your boss and with your colleagues. Think about those. Are you always straightforward and honest in your interactions throughout the day? If not, why not?
Okay, we made a start. We'll have more to say about these four manly actions to take to reflect Christ at work. For now, apply what we've learned today.
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