E-couragement 07.27

“All we need is love”: Perhaps the greatest disconnect between biblical truth and Kingdom reality in the business world is the gap between the King’s command to love and our everyday actions. I really struggle with loving my enemies, loving my neighbor and loving myself. I would rather try this at home or at church but loving in business is so…well, so “unbusinesslike”.

Let’s take loving our enemies: Who are my enemies in business? Is it my competition, the guy in the next cubicle trying to get the same promotion I am seeking or perhaps the regulator trying to force me to do things I don’t think are in our best interest. Enemies in business are everywhere so it seems. In fact, the competitive nature of “free enterprise economics” creates enemies. Yet I am commanded – not asked but commanded – to love my enemies. Unlike competition in sports that starts over at the end of every season, competition at work can last for a long time with one struggle building on another. If I get a leg up on my competition for a promotion, it is likely I will maintain that advantage for a long time, potentially even becoming her boss. Is that when I love, once I have gotten the advantage or am I to love in the process?

I think it all boils down to one simple thing; do I always seek to bring out the best in others, encourage them, be there for them, provide a relational place where they can feel valued and cared for – even in the midst of competing for something with them? If I do that, then maybe love is the act of will that keeps me from gaining advantage from their weaknesses or mistakes. Do I beat their best, committed to helping them be their best, or do I try to trip them along the way and cross the finish line ahead of them after they stumble. Too often in my career I have experienced people competing by bringing the competition down, not by achieving beyond the best the competition has to offer.

In sales, do my sales people denigrate the other guy or promote what we do and focus on our advantages rather than their disadvantages? In career competition, do I honor, encourage and support my peers, allowing that to be one of the differentiators between us? Love at work is not an emotion but an act of will, willing to bring out the best in others, supporting their efforts, praising their successes and lifting them up when they fall. Before I can love I need to will that I love and in willing to love, I can access the perspective of the greatest “lover” of our souls, Christ our King.

Finally, is it only for my fellow followers that I should will to love or is it for everyone in my circle of influence? Obviously it is easier to love the brethren, but it is His command that we love our enemies and the challenge to compete can lead to the potential to see so many others as the enemy. Being the best and beating their best is a good start to loving. Bringing out their best along the way is even better.

“Father, help me to love, even when it appears that by loving I may lose some advantage. With you, there is never a loss when we do what you command. Let my will align with your will and my actions lead to bringing the best out in others. Teach me to love the way you love. Amen”