I have an experience about using the gospel at work.

Not long after I started working at a family owned company that’s been in business since 1961, the owner and I made a habit of meeting one-one-one in her office at the end of the day.

In one of these meetings, we discussed a few upcoming changes in company policy that would follow changes in government regulations. She was distressed that there might be a sense of annoyance from employees due to these changes. She wanted to make sure each employee knew that these changes were imposed on the company as a whole, management not being exempted.

She said to me, “You know, me and my husband are set. We have enough money to live out the rest of our lives without the company. You know what keeps us here, even at our ripe age of 85? The people. The employees here are our family and we know of several who are struggling financially. We’re willing to put up with burdensome regulations to help those employees feed their families every night. We love them.”

I asked if she’d considered writing an open letter to her employees expressing that love and sentiment to them. She seemed a bit surprised by my suggestion and replied, “They’ve all worked here for over 40 years, they know how we feel about them!” I just smiled, knowing Lent had recently started, and in this season of fasting her nerves might be shorter. I said, “But that’s precisely why we go to church every Sunday,isn’t it? We know God’s there and we know He loves us. But we’re human. We forget things unless they are right in front of us.”

Tears welled up in her eyes, which then shifted to look at the cross in front of her computer. “I really do need to get back to going to church every week, don’t I?” She paused, and I felt prompted to wait. So I did. A minute later, she continued, “I’m still in awe of what you did over there in Taiwan. I think 40 days a year giving up sweets is hard, but you… you gave your whole life for 18 months. And I can see the change it’s made in you. I need to have that kind of devotion.”

I realized my somewhat off-handed analogy had hit home. In the years I’ve known this woman, I’ve never seen her in anything but business mode. This was possibly the first moment I recognized as an opportunity when she was open to me sharing a piece of the Gospel with her. I said a little prayer and opened my mouth:

“It starts with prayer, reading scriptures daily and going to church every Sunday. We need those constant reminders that God is really there and that He loves us. We need to feel that He’s provided a way for us to overcome weaknesses — Jesus Christ — and let that feeling of love and peace help us make changes, help us become better people.”

We talked for another 20 minutes about what it takes to truly repent, what true conversion really means and the power of love in overcoming obstacles.

By the end, she was happier than I’d seen her in over a month. She opened the door to her office and was berated with complaints and problems all related to these new company policies, but her attitude was different. It was not one of defeated compliance, but rather “this is what I’m doing because God loves me, and I want to help others feel His love.”

-Vanessa O. Houston, TX