Presented by Lauren Stibgen

Do you have a colleague who gets on your last nerve? Do situations in the workplace just get to you sometimes? How we display patience at work with others reflects our faith.

And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will (2 Timothy 2:24-26).

We surely cannot accomplish this with impatience! Think of a simple example of showing patience during a meeting. You wait and wait to make a statement. In fact, you think it is a very important point. Your colleague seems to be droning on and on about a topic with which you wholly disagree. In your impatience, do you end up so annoyed that you quarrel over the relevance of what they are saying, or do you wait patiently for them to speak, carefully listening so that you can perhaps patiently present a counter point? I think we have all been in this scenario. Your patience in a situation like this can help you reflect more respect and help others to listen to you!

Are you perhaps charged with training new hires as they start with your company? Maybe these new hires are even new to the workforce. Sometimes they just don’t catch on as quickly as you would like. Are you impatient and quick to judge them as not able to do the job at hand, or do you patiently teach them to do the job well?

Ultimately, 2 Timothy 2:24-26 reminds us our opponents—in our case those that we work with—need to be instructed and dealt with gently by us. The instruction to lovingly display our patience in all circumstances, can be a good way to live out what I often call Faith at Work 1.0—showing up differently so that someone asks why.

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect (1 Peter 3:15).

Showing up with patience at work when people frustrate you can be just one way you start a conversation about Jesus with them. Don’t waste this opportunity with impatience! I am praying for you to increase your patience at work today!