Coming to Grips With the Workplace by Martin Wiles

I was crawling under houses where busted sewage lines, crawling snakes, dangling spiders, and choking dust loved to hang out. I hated every day the alarm clock screamed because I knew I had to go where I desperately despised. After six months, I walked out. But not everyone can.

Australian National University researchers claim having a hated job is as bad for one’s health as having no job. The rates of anxiety and depression are identical (dublinnews.com).

Orkin wasn’t my cup of tea, but in the seventies life and the economy were good, so I could locate a job almost anywhere. And I did. Yet when unemployment is high, the economy is sour, or there are no other options, being forced to work at a place I hate is taxing on the nerves. I know. I’ve had other unpleasant jobs I couldn’t walk away from.

Solomon’s work was depressing as well. So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind (Ecclesiastes 2:17 NIV).

But there’s a trick to the trade when I’m stuck where I’d rather not be: I must remember whom I’m working for. Regardless of who signs my check, whether they’re the nastiest boss around, and whether the working conditions are horrible, God is my CEO. Performing my duties with an upbeat attitude, helping my co-workers when I have extra time, smiling even though I’m frowning inside, offering innovative ideas to improve the workplace, and remaining in an attitude of prayer while I do all of the previous help me make it through the toilsome days.

If you’re stuck in a working situation with no immediate escape, learn to make the best of it by keeping your focus on whom you’re actually working for.

Prayer: Lord, we don’t always understand why You place us in unpleasant situations, but keep us focused, upbeat, and pleasant until You change our venues.

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