Evangelism in the workplace:
Integrity precedes creativity

by TAN SIN GUAN

Imagine God has impressed upon you to talk to your colleagues about Jesus Christ. What would you do? How would you go about fulfilling the task? Sitting next to you in your office is a divorcee and single-mother who is a radical feminist and the man in front of you a free thinker and probably gay. The Indian behind your cubical is a staunch Hindu activist while the male colleague across the hall a hardcore womanizer. The tea lady is a devoted Daoist and you work under a zealous PAS supporter, thus making Islam the official religion in your workplace. How can you possibly get their attention long enough to listen to your message on repentance and the love of God? In addition, everyone is working under immense pressure and tight schedules, not to mention that each working environment is distinctive with its own policies to adhere to. In a certain context, evangelism in the office is flat-out unethical. What would you do?

The culture of the workplace and the business world is changing exceedingly fast and the need to reach our colleagues for Christ remains as challenging and daunting as ever. We live in an era where tolerance is a key virtue for harmonious relationships in our complex and pluralistic society. Exalting one's religious belief is perceived as improper and insensitive. Moreover ideas and philosophies once confined to lecture halls and sub-cultures which were once foreign to Malaysia have now largely become mainstreams. Talking to people about Christ is in reality getting more difficult and challenging.

For this reason the call for creativity in evangelism emerges, in response to a desperate call to find ways and approaches to reach the 21st century non-believers for Jesus Christ. Creative evangelism is a common phrase that refers to unconventional attempts to communicate the message of the Gospel in a way that is relevant to the non-believers. Examples of creative evangelism in this post-modern world are evangelism via the internet, drama, culture, music, cartoons and even comics that build common ground so as to bridge the gap between the non-believers and the message of the Gospel.

There is strong biblical basis for creative evangelism. Jesus was the master of creative evangelism. When a Jewish religious leader by the name of Nicodemus came to meet Jesus one night, Jesus took him by surprise when he told Nicodemus that he must be born again in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven (John 3:1-17). In the encounter with a Samaritan woman by the well, Jesus reached out to the woman and thereafter the entire village by talking about water (John 4:1-42). It is not difficult to notice that Jesus Christ used everything available to communicate the truth of God. He used loaves of bread and fish, seeds, wheat, trees, sickness, stone, sea, demons and many more to illustrate and communicate the truth to His listeners. We see a similar example in Paul when he reached out to the Athenians. He observed that the Athenians, in addition to their pantheon of gods, worshipped an 'unknown God.' Paul bridged the gap to their hearts when he gave a name to this 'unknown God' (Acts 17:22-23).

But is creativity an issue in our attempt to reach our colleagues for Christ?

Creativity in evangelism is necessary and has its place in workplace evangelism. Yet this writer wants to emphasize that, more than creativity, a key factor to effective evangelism in the workplace is integrity. Integrity precedes creativity. Creativity is redundant without integrity. There is no short-cut magic to effective and sustainable workplace evangelism. Very much emphasis has been placed on developing outreach strategies and how to do "witnessing" in the workplace for Christ. Knowing how to do witnessing is important, but what is more relevant and foundational is simply being a "witness" for Christ. Our concern should not be how to stuff people with information about Jesus Christ but how to present to people the life of Jesus Christ.

In reality, our colleagues are not as concerned with the validity of Christianity as with the relevance of Jesus Christ to their lives. They can tell because they spend at least 40 hours a week observing our lives in the office, and they can tell if indeed Jesus Christ is relevant in their workplace or not. Integrity is also about respecting the non-believing colleague's integrity and vulnerability while also considering our professional role in the company. We cannot just preach and neglect what is expected of us as an employee of the company (William Carr Peel & Walt Larimore: 2003).

In some cases, evangelism is an event. In most cases however, evangelism in the workplace is a process, most likely, a long process. The good news is that every Christian can be part of this process, and be very comfortable about it. While it is true that ultimately one needs to proclaim the message of the Gospel and invite a decision, much of the process involves simply being a Christian of integrity.

There are four practical areas readers can consider in the workplace:

Firstly, involve God in your workplace through prayer. Pray for guidance in matters pertaining to decision-making, relationship among colleagues, the company's daily operations and your daily walk as a Christian. You may want to invite a few like-minded Christians to pray along with you in the office if the context permits. Do not undermine the necessity of prayer because it is while we pray that real ministry takes place though it may be unseen with our naked eyes (Daniel 10:12-14). This step sounds simple but it is surprisingly challenging to practice. It would be helpful to invite marketplace ministry personnel to "kick-start" a mini-prayer movement within and for the office. You may want to consider sourcing some help from Impact! Ministry of Malaysia Campus Crusade for Christ. In addition, take the initiative to read up on Christians in the workplace. Learn biblical principles in business practices, decision-making and work ethics. Resources to help Christians in the workplace are plentiful. For a start, you may want to check out some articles by this writer at www.mccc.org.my.

Secondly, be committed to excel in your work. Work is sacred in God's eyes. The first task assigned to man after creation is to work. When sin entered the world, God disciplined the man and the woman, and cursed the serpent and the land but He spared the work (Genesis 3:1-19). God Himself is a worker (Genesis 2:2). Therefore, there is no justification for a Christian to be sloppy in his work. In fact, a good Christian in the workplace and sloppy work are incompatible! A Christian must be competent. It does not mean that he should be better than everyone else. It does mean that he is serious about doing good work and doing his best (Colossians 3:23; Proverbs 22:29). Research has revealed that "competence is a foundational requirement for spiritual influence in the workplace" (William Carr Peel & Walt Larimore: 2003). Be committed to brush up your competency in communications, sales, administration and people skills for God's glory.

Thirdly, build a genuine relationship with your peers in the workplace. Evangelism in the workplace often begins with our colleagues' heart, not with our message. This is because people are more concerned with the relevance of Jesus Christ to their lives. In fact, non-Christians rarely dispute the factual reliability of Christianity. While each of our colleagues may adhere to different belief systems, they share similar struggles and needs, such as security, uncertainty, companionship and so on. Offer genuine friendship and make effort to know them a little better. Try to discern what God is doing in their lives and then just tag along with God. Be an encourager and be helpful; begin with common courtesies. We must earn the right to be heard.

Finally, if the above suggestions are practiced faithfully, you would be surprised how readily your colleagues are willing to hear what you have to say. Share your personal faith story with them when the opportunity arises. Our personal faith story is useful and effective in this context because it is authentic, creates curiosity and is non-threatening. Furthermore, stories usually resonate well with their hearts, especially when your experiences are similar to theirs. Build alliances with churches or Christian groups and tag after their outreach activities. And of course, when the time is ripe, take the bold step to invite your colleague to make a decision for the Lord.

Tan Sin Guan is director of Malaysia Campus Crusade for Christ’s Impact! ministry. He is also an associate pastor of Klang Chinese Methodist Church.