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Lessons from my workplace: Dealing with difficult situations

notibutchrist — Sat, 03 Nov 2007 16:02:11 +0000

There are many reactions people would have when the time for them to leave the national service comes. Some would feel excited or relieved that the two years have finally passed. Others would feel strange or empty, as if suddenly a huge part of their lives had left them. Some others liken their ORD date to a prison release, experiencing freedom after a long while.To me, my departure date isn't really different. I do feel excited, a little strange and also liberated. But more so, I feel thankful. I am really thankful that I have walked out of the army feeling a change in me. I am so grateful to God that this 2 years had not been wasted at all. I thank God that I have been put into his very own schoolroom of life's situations to be moulded, taught and formed not just into a better person, but a new man.

Frankly speaking, my army life isn't as sweet and comfortable like how others thought mine would turn out to be. Although I have been relieved from combat duties to a relatively peaceful and easy camp, I could say life had been worst since I transferred. But nevertheless, I have to be thankful to God that I could see my family everyday after work and need not stay in camp.

I have been through quite a number of difficult situations that clearly pushed me to my very limits. Many a time, I do think that I am "jinxed" in the sense that I would get punished for every single small detail done wrong when others could definitely get away with it. I was thinking really hard whether I truly was so unlucky to face so many troubles in my army life and yet deep down inside, I knew that I really didn't do things very wrong.

In fact, I thought of boasting many times to others that I am the most capable in my workplace. I hold 3 appointments. I have been working in many different departments. I do almost every right. Moreover, I am so humble. I do not complain or even boast to anyone the tasks I have accomplished to gain recongition by my superiors. Who else could be better than me.

But God did not just want me to be that way. He knew what I was doing wasn't enough to please him.

Doing my very best and not complaining was enough for me to feel good about myself, but I thank God that he wanted more than that to please him.

Looking back, I am beginning to realise that my army life is truly in God's hands. I denied this at first. I thought I was just simply reaping what I have sowed. Yes, this was true, but yet God gave me even more than I deserved in my punishment so that he could teach me his lessons.

Repeatedly, I was thrown into difficult situations, situations in which I was pushed to my brim until the point when I told God, "It's enough! I give up!" Then, I begin to see how God worked and how he rescued me from these situations, how he broke me through and through to demonstrate how he would have mercy upon me.

One major one came last year when a conflict arose between me and the other colleagues. I was preyed upon quite easily due to my silent nature. They capitalised on the mistakes that I made to put me into bad books with my superiors. I could remember how much distress and anguish it costs me, how bitter I became and how I thought of evil but legitimate thoughts to snap back at them. Nevertheless, I failed miserably and I was angry with God.

I told God how righteous I was and how evil those guys were. And God taught me from Psalms. At that point of time I could really identify with the Psalmist's situation. Particularly Psalms 3:

Ps 3:1 - O Lord, how many are my foes! How many rise up against me! Many are saying of me, "God will not deliver him."

Ps 3:7.8 - Arise, O Lord! Deliver me, O my God! Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked. From the Lord comes deliverance. May your blessing be on your people.

I wanted God to deliver me from my foes just as he had delivered the Psalms. So, I began my retaliation to get even with them. Thankfully I failed miserably because that wasn't what God wants. He taught me Romans 12:17-19:

"Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay..."

I failed because I was taking my own revenge on my enemies. I wasn't letting God do the work. I trapped myself in another sticky situation in which things became far worse than before. Thankfully, God was gracious. He answered my prayers in another manner.

I asked for harm on my foes, he gave them grace. I asked for conflicts upon them, he gave them peace.

Thank God because his ways are higher than my ways. I realised that as God had given me grace and peace, he also could give it to those who harmed me.

This situation was resolved in a peaceful manner. We came down to talking terms to end the entire hostility that we had against each other and it remained that way till all these guys left the service some time ago.

Romans 9:15 - "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion."

I really marvels me how God could work in this situation. He nevertheless repays evil with good and has mercy and compassionate on the wicked. How could I not be merciful and compassionate to my foes, when even God has mercy and compassion on them?

Romans 9:20a - "But who are you, O man, to talk back to God?"

Who am I to argue against what God does? He has absolute and sovereign control over how he causes situations to turn out in my life. And I thank him that he has done just that for me.

Lessons from my Workplace: God is All and in All

notibutchrist — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 15:57:15 +0000

I thank God that my time serving my national service is coming to an end really soon. I'm now in midst of clearing my offs and leaves. What a good period of time it is that God has given me to reflect on his goodness towards me and lessons he has taught me for the past 1 year and 9 months!The past 1 year and 9 months serving my national service wasn't exactly smooth sailing. In fact, I would rather describe it as a roller-coaster ride. I have been posted to 4 different units in total. In each unit, encountering various forms of trials and learning quite a few life lessons, I have been given an opportunity to draw closer to him and grow in different aspects of my faith.

Firstly, I was posted to be a commando. After which, I was posted to medic school to be trained as a medic. Then, I was posted to be a medic in an armour unit. Finally, I arrived at my current workplace in the medical centre of another unit. My postings couldn't possibly come by chance! How few servicemen had a chance to be in 4 different units to experience 4 different aspects of army life like me! Yet in each unit, I learnt things of varying character. I am so convinced from this that God has been in control of my life and bringing me through his purposes for my life. I thank God for his sovereignity in my postings.

In my first unit, training to be a commando, God had kept me safe from harm and major injuries. Being an injury-proned person, I'm amazed how I did not break any bones nor suffer from any exhaustion through all the physically and mentally challenging exercises. The training there pushed me nearly to my physical limits. I have broke few of my personal records there by not sleeping for my record number of hours and walking my record distance. Yet, I was kept safe amidst all these. I knew it wasn't me alone who went through all these things. I am someone who is weak mentally and I do give up easily when things are tough. God was carrying me through by his own hand.

In medic school, I had to face my greatest childhood fear: Needles. Since young, I have been traumatised by needles. I would be so afraid that would not be able to sleep well the night before knowing there would be vaccinations in school the next day. A section of the training in school was to practice Intravenous Infusion(IV) on each other's arms. To make things worse, I was told that we would be using the needles that were the size of "Vitagen" or "Yakult" straws. Throughout the first few weeks of the course, I couldn't sleep well the night before the IV practice. The practices were so torturing for me that I repeatedly fell ill. Miraculously, I overcame needles at the end of the medic course. God was in this too! He took all my fears away.

I am reminded by this verse:

Psalms 8:4: "What is man, that Thou dost take thought of him? And the son of man, that Thou dost care for him?"

Looking back at God's goodness in my life, especially in these past 2 years, I am reminded again that I have a loving heavenly Father who is interested even in my life. He cares for me and is constantly watching over me, keeping me from harm's way. I am but a man, but he, the creator of heaven and earth, does take thought of me.

Thank you Lord!

Lessons from my workplace: The Daily Grind of Work

notibutchrist — Sun, 19 Aug 2007 15:54:51 +0000

I have been serving my national service since 06 January 2006. Life in NS has been a roller coaster ride since, with lots of ups and downs. I have been thankful from posting out of combat to work in a medical centre as a service medic. I thought that life would be perfect. I could book out every single day, work in an air-conditioned environment and do what I always dreamt of: being a medic to save lives and serve others. To be a medic to me was like the best vocation any enlistee could get. Instead of training to take lives, I am trained to preserve one.But life wasn't exactly perfect as I thought it would be. There were many other troubles and problems that arose within the medical centre. These were not simple problems that could be solved within a short span of time, but rather they were in-built problems in the system itself. They have given many nights of un-peaceful sleep, mental stress and unrest within me.Firstly, being conscripted into the service, inevitably, most of my colleagues didn't had any motivation to work hard like any other worker would in the corporate world. Even though my medical centre ran like a private clinic, most of the staff were never committed to the things they were assigned to do. Most had the attitude and mindset of doing the very bare minimal to please their superiors and stay out of trouble.

There were a minority who decided to work hard and do slightly more than they were required. They did all tasks assigned to them well enough to please their superiors in order to earn rewards like day offs. Their superiors, knowing their working capabilities, gave them a greater workload, so as to get more jobs well done. Knowingly, these minorities placed themselves in this precarious position. But they didn't mind due to the rewards.

These were the two wise paths one could take to survive national service. Of course there were those who chose not to do anything well and exposed themselves frequently to punishment.

I chose the second path. I performed my duties well to show my capability. I wanted to do my work to the best of my abilities so that I could even be better than those who tried to work hard. I wanted my superior to know that I am the best and the most hardworking medic around and I deserved the most days off.

However, things did not turn out like I wished it would.

Yes, I did work hard, in fact, very hard. I got the same number of off days as the rest. I was given 3 appointments instead of one and it became impossible to cope well. As a result, I was the most prone to committing errors, mostly unintentionally. My colleagues in all my departments let me do most of the work so that they could slack. The little portion that they were to do were not done well such that I had to bear their punishment along with them.

Life was miserable. I fell sick a couple of days as a result of the heavy workload, but had no rest as my work piled up and I had to complete them when I returned. I felt my burdens so heavy. My body was wasting away. I could no longer smile with true peace in my heart. Everyday was work and more work. I was going to be trapped in this cycle till the last day of my national service.

I read my bible to find solace in these pressing times. I read Philippians 2:14 -" Do all things without grumbling or disputing." But I felt it too difficult to work out this verse. How was I to do all things without grumbling or disputing? It felt as if God did not understand my situation at all. Everyday, I am pushed to my very limits of my physical strength. Everyday, I do every thing to my very best. You do not understand what I'm going through. I am already different from the rest. What more do you want, God?

But I thanked God for revealing what he wants from me. And that gave me the true release of my predicament.

This was the verse God used to teach me his ways:

Colossians 3:22-24 -"Slaves, in all things obey whose who are your masters on earth, not with external service, as those who merely please men, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve."

This verse showed me that what I have been doing thus far was not pleasing to God. Yes, I have worked hard, but working hard doesn't mean pleasing God. I was giving my 100% in all I was doing even though I need not. Yes, this made me different from others. I was better than the others because I put in more effort though not required because it made no difference not to work hard. But in God's eyes, I was no different.

He showed me that I was pleasing men instead of God. I was working in order to show my superiors to get more day offs. I was upset because I wasn't given any for my hard work. I learned that to work just to be seen is just to please men. Hence, my working hard for the wrong reason was useless and it was not bringing glory to God.

How I should work would be with sincerity of heart, with one single focus - fearing the Lord. My motivation in work must be to bring honour and glory to God. I thank God that he is my true employer in heaven. He is who I truly work for. Only then I can work heartily, without grumbling or disputing.

After knowing this, I thank God for shifting my focus from working for offs and pride to working unto him for a reward in heaven.

Matthew 6:1 - "Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven."