I was 1,800 miles from my home attending a business meeting when I got a call from my wife. We talk on the phone every day when I travel, but it is always in the evening. So, I knew something was going on for her to call me in the middle of the day.
Our doctor had called and said we needed to bring mom into the office the next day. It was urgent, and he wanted Barb and me to be there with mom. I left the meeting and headed to the airport.
The next morning, we all met in the doctor’s office. He gave mom the news. Her latest x-ray indicated significant cancer in her right lung. She needed an operation, chemotherapy, and radiation.
Mom didn’t know she was sick. She needed her doctor to heal her. She didn’t need him judgmentally saying, “Well that’s what happens when you smoke cigarettes for 50 years!”
Mom needed a doctor, not a judge.
Our Workplaces Are Sick
A recent Gallup study on the State of the American Workforce found that 67% of employees are not actively engaged at work. Worse, 16 % are actively disengaged. Thus, our workplaces are sick!
A lot of factors contribute to employee disengagement. It is not scientific, but in my experience, a lot of employee disengagement results from relational issues, those at home and work.
One young woman I know had an affair with a coworker. Guilt finally led her to confess and tell her husband about the affair. She fought hard to repair her marriage and restore her family over the next year. Do you think the problems at home affected her level of engagement?
A middle-aged man saw his son and then daughter graduate from high school. Right after the daughter graduated, his wife said she wanted a divorce. They had grown apart over the years. He fought to keep his marriage together, but over the next months, he lost the battle as his wife was determined to live life alone. Do you think he was distracted and disengaged during that time?
A friend had a disagreement with a co-worker. As the disagreement escalated, the coworker suddenly pushed my friend and pinned him against the office wall. Other coworkers intervened to end the assault. One employee had to complete anger management courses mandated by HR, while my friend had to continue to work with the man who had assaulted him. Do you think either man was distracted and disengaged? What about all the other coworkers who witnessed the assault?
Our workplaces are sick because many of our employees are suffering from some form of relational sickness! They may not know they are sick, but in most cases, they need a healer more than they need a judge!
The Ultimate Healer
Our employees and coworkers suffer from a variety of relational sicknesses and are in desperate need of healing. But, how can they be healed?
They need to know Jesus and His healing power.
Jesus died on the cross to take away our sins so that we might live for righteousness and be healed. 1 Peter 2:24 says, “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds, you have been healed.”
If Jesus brings relational healing power, then people need to know Jesus. The best way for people to know Jesus is to see Jesus reflected in us. Jesus reminds us we are to be a light to the world so others will see it, and through our actions be drawn to the Father (Matthew 5:16).
Our Response
It is through our actions that people can see Jesus reflected in our lives. Our actions are important. We cannot sit on the sidelines and let the relationally sick go untreated. Nor should we wag our fingers at them in judgment.
Believers, we are not called to sit in holy huddles, separated from the real world. We are called to be in the world so that we might share the Good News with those who so desperately need to hear it. That includes our employees in the workplace!
Jesus said, “It is not healthy who need a doctor. But the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:17).
Jesus is the ultimate healer. As believers, we are a bit like a physician’s assistant, called to treat the sick as Jesus would. So, break away from your holy huddle of Christians friends and spend some time in the real world. Then you will begin to see the relationally sick. They are all around us in the workplace, and they need healing more than they need a judge.
You never know, the person that you reach out to today, may have just heard terrible news the day before. Don’t let them go untreated. Make sure through your actions they see and come to know the Ultimate Healer.
Join the Conversation
As always, questions and comments are welcome. Are there opportunities to treat relationally sick employees in your workplace? If so, how?
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Category: Relationships | Interpersonal Relationships
