Humility is the Key to a Godly Decision

I have had to make some tough decisions in 2013 and in the early part of 2014. Most of these decisions had to do with my personal life. Don't worry, all is well (or at least getting better and better), but tough decisions none the less.


There is nothing tougher than to make decisions that affect family, friends and employees. Obviously, the tough decisions that affect only acquaintances, is not really of concern. So what do we do when we have to make these tough decisions about employees?

God’s Word is always the ultimate arbiter of right and wrong, but on the issue of firing employees, the Bible offers a somewhat complicated teaching. One thing that we know for sure, though, is that in this process, as in all things, our first calling is to humility.

Move  slowly and introspectively, asking questions like:

• Did this person know the rules and expectations?
• Was improper training or some other management blunder the real culprit here?
• Have I really measured this person’s performance accurately?
• Is my decision motivated too much by profit concerns or by my personal dislike of this employee?
• Have I considered the individual’s family situation?
• And overall, am I honoring God as Boss and reflecting His face through my decision-making process?”

 

These are hard questions and they take time to answer.

Spending more time on our people is just part of the deal if we truly intend to take God seriously in the workplace. We will put more effort into decision-making and we will respect inconvenient – sometimes counter-cultural – guidelines that our peers blithely ignore. That’s humility before God.

Our distinctive attitude  as Christians must be a humble willingness to invest the time to balance discipline and forgiveness – to always seek God’s way. Sometimes God’s way will entail giving second or third chances, retraining the employee, offering lateral transfers for fit, and so on.

Other times it will entail delivering a pink slip, no matter how much you like the employee. But one thing it will always entail is walking with our employees in hard times, whether we’re walking them back to their work station or out the door. I wish I had all of these principles nailed down in my life and in my work. I don't, but I continue to move forward.

Keep up the great attitude. Do the right thing and never give up on doing good.


Take care,
Mark