3 Fears When Talking About Our Faith at Work (and How to Overcome Them)
by Malissa Mackey
What’s the universal question co-workers across the country ask every Monday morning? If it’s not some form of “what did you do this weekend?” then it’s probably related to the weather or who is going to make the coffee run! Out of habit or actual curiosity, your weekend plans were likely the source of inquiry at some point this past Monday morning. How often do you respond with something related to your Sunday morning worship attendance or some other church-related activity? It’s usually easier and less awkward to skip over that part of our weekend, even if those activities actually took up the majority of your time. Why is that?
There are a number of reasons we might feel uncomfortable talking about our faith in the workplace. But the three that surface most often are related to:
Legal Issues - Can I get in any kind of legal trouble? Or will there be HR ramifications?
Reputation Concerns - What will my co-workers/clients etc think of me? Really what we probably mean, is will they think less of me? Will they think… fill in the blank about any Christian stereotype with which you don’t want to be associated
Awkward Conversations - Will I make them feel uncomfortable? Will I feel uncomfortable? What if I don’t know what to say?
Let’s examine each of these and seek wisdom for how we might proceed when faced with whether or not to talk about Jesus at work.
1. LEGAL and HR ISSUES
When asked about how to know the company policy regarding discussions of faith in the workplace, the most practical advice I heard from a lawyer friend was, “Read your HR handbook.” Pretty good idea actually. We should know what is out of bounds in our company - what activity is legitimate grounds for being written up or fired?
I don’t assume you’re belligerent, pushy, or chasing your co-workers around with a Bible. But to clarify what the actual law states, you should know about Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII). The American Center for Law and Justice explains, “If required by their religious beliefs, an employee's religiously motivated expressions of faith are protected by Title VII.” To ensure that your religious speech is protected by Title VII, you should be able to honestly say that you believe it’s part of your faith commitment to share the Gospel whenever possible (certainly the expectation is that it’s with willing co-workers and during breaks or other free time). According to Title VII, you can engage in religious speech at work as long as there is no actual imposition on co-workers or disruption of the work routine.
While it is important for us to consider legal and HR policies, likely the bigger question for us is related to the underlying cultural assumption that religious conversation, or faith in general, does not belong in public. We have bought into the lie that there is “neutral space” in the boardrooms, classrooms, and halls of government. We’ve been conditioned to think that when we bring up our faith, we are somehow changing what the space is intended to be. But the truth is, there is no “neutral space.” Everyone brings claims about what is ultimate in life - how we should behave morally, the purpose of work, what constitutes “the good life” - into the public arena. It’s impossible not to! To say that faith is a private matter and doesn’t belong in public is actually a faith claim. It is based on a particular ideology about the world.
Is it difficult to assert a Biblical worldview in public, or claim that Jesus is King and reigns over your company? Absolutely! But it is not something we have to keep out of our workspace as if everyone else is keeping the space neutral and no personally held beliefs impact the way we behave or what should and should not be discussed. As Christians, and frankly, as those who live in America, we should be people who uphold the freedom to express differently held beliefs, and to hold these beliefs with conviction.
2. REPUTATION CONCERNS
The second issue is related to fear of what co-workers/clients might think if they find out you’re a Christian or if you say something they don’t like. We live at a unique time in history where we’re encouraged to bring our “whole selves” to work. We celebrate diversity in terms of ethnicity, culture, and gender identity. But one identity that generally will not be applauded is Christ-follower. People assume they know how you vote, your stance on every social issue, all the things you are against, and what you are judging them for. Honestly, that caricature is something to own and lament. Christians have often hurt people, not for upholding God’s truth, but for the way in which we have done so.
In Matthew 10, Jesus commands His disciples to go to the people of Israel announcing that “the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” He gives them a warning and some advice: “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” Both wisdom and innocence are needed in spaces like most of our workplaces, where the Kingdom of God is not recognized. Wisdom means that we need to talk about the gospel in a way that is not foolish, careless, or annoying. We need to be aware of when it is not the right time or way in which to carry on gospel conversations. Innocence means we need to be humble and gentle, not giving people a reason to accuse us of injustice or immorality.
Usually, if a Christian is going to be fired it’s not for talking about the gospel, it’s because they are not doing the work, are lazy, or incompetent, or some other reason. We can’t control our co-worker’s presuppositions about Christians; but we can be known for being hard workers, men and women of character, and people who show care and respect for others. While we should not seek to be offensive in our presentation, we should remember that the gospel itself is offensive to those who don’t recognize their need for a Savior.
3. AWKWARD CONVERSATIONS
Lastly, one of the biggest things that keeps us from saying anything about our faith is simply fear. Fear that we will make our co-workers uncomfortable. Fear that we will be uncomfortable or awkward or that we won’t know what to say. These are real concerns, but it’s here that we have the opportunity to be both proactive and dependent on the Spirit.
There are some very simple things we can do in terms of being wise in taking opportunities to have spiritual conversations - and it doesn’t have to be weird! You can “raise faith flags” in your office. People are always signaling things they care about and that are important to them; you can do the same. Simply having a Christian book on your desk, or Scripture on a card on your computer, or reading your Bible at lunch can open opportunities for those willing and interested in engaging in spiritual conversation.
We should also be people who “bring our whole selves to work” and talk about our lives in ways that are genuine to who we are. Share confidently that you went to church on the weekend or to a small group - that’s just being honest! Let people know things you are praying about, or share something you learned from a sermon or in your Scripture reading. Talk about the way God answered a prayer or how encouraging your Community Group is. Far from shoving religion down someone’s throat, you are genuinely inviting them into your life.
One of the greatest gifts you can give your non-believing friends is simply an ear to listen and a genuine curiosity about their lives. Ask a co-worker about their story and then ask a follow-up question. You can ask about their faith journey or if they have a church background or if they pray. Ask if you can pray for them! These are ways to build bridges and plant seeds that you may be able to follow up on over time. We never know what the Lord will do with them.
WALKING IN WISDOM AND FAITH
Many of the questions about bringing up Jesus in the workplace are driven by fear - fear of getting in trouble, fear of what people will think, and fear of not knowing what to say or do. What does it look like to walk in wisdom and faith in the face of these fears?
Fear the Lord, not man. That’s easy to say, but honestly, this is where the rubber meets the road in our faith - do we fear man more than God? Do we think being liked is where true joy is found? Or do we believe what God says is true about where life, and joy, and salvation are found? Sometimes we find that we’ve slipped into thinking that we have to take care of ourselves and provide for ourselves. We must remember that our Father has given us everything. Look to the cross for proof (Romans 8:32). Even if you do something so egregious that gets you fired, ruins your reputation, or makes someone angry - you are NEVER beyond God’s love and care for you! We need to carefully examine if what we say we believe on Sunday about God and His work in the world and in our own lives, is in line with the way we act in our office Monday morning. Ultimately our desire is to please our Father, who loves us more than we could possibly imagine. Ask Him to help you remember these things when you’re tempted to push Him aside or afraid of talking about Him at work.
Love people. As stated above, the call is to be people who have our eyes and hearts open to our co-workers and who genuinely seek to care for them. Let’s seek to build relationships of integrity with our co-workers and be sensitive to the prompting of the Spirit to step into conversations about faith when they arise. Perhaps begin by simply praying for the co-workers you regularly see. Make it a habit as you commute to work or when you make your first cup of coffee. The call isn’t to think of them as a conversation project, but as people we care about and who we want to know Jesus. Let’s be wise as serpents about when and as innocent as doves about how.
Walk by faith. Ultimately we need to walk by faith. There are no black-and-white answers as to when it’s appropriate to talk about our faith at work. This is actually the beautiful part about being filled with the Holy Spirit. We walk by faith, not by sight and we trust that the Lord has prepared good work for us to step into. We can trust that He is with us and He will lead and guide. We might be terrified, we might not say what we think are the “right words,” but we can trust Him to use our feeble offerings. It’s not up to us to bring about salvation, that’s His job! And we can be confident that He will do His job. So we live the adventure, we pray, we walk in the Spirit, we look for what God is doing, and we seek to join Him.
These blogs came out of our Winter 2023 6 Urgent Questions series of talks. You can listen to them on our podcast below.