Don’t quit

“If your boss is angry at you, don’t quit! A quiet spirit can overcome even great mistakes.”

(Eccl 10:4NLT)

I once worked with a boss that seemed at the time to take delight in ridiculing the jobs of his subordinates. He would just find a way to diminish the relevance of whatever you have done, leaving you with a feeling that you were useless, irresponsible and incapable of using your head to solve simple problems. So, many who came to work with us then in the office, simply because they were attracted by the outward glamour of all we were doing, could not cope for more than two months before they left. And that was because our boss was a very hard to please man. You know, he was the kind that would not mind if you put your life on the line in order to accomplish the measure of excellence he desired.

Nevertheless, some of us did not run away or quit working with him, though he never made it easy for any of us. He often made us feel like we were just too dull and incompetent to work with him. And he was indeed a highly intelligent and result oriented person. Why, then, did we stay? Why did we not run away? Well, while I cannot speak for others or tell you the reasons they stayed on to work with that man, I can tell you my own reason. And it is seen in our opening bible text, which says, “If your boss is angry at you, don’t quit! A quiet spirit can overcome even great mistakes.”

From this Scripture, it is clear that working under people won’t always come easy. There may be times in which they will get angry with us either because they are dissatisfied with our work results or with our attitudes. And it is not every one of them will go about handling this with love or respect. The fact is that only very few leaders discipline, correct or rebuke their subordinates in love and with respect, with a view to making them better in handling their responsibilities. Most of the leaders you will find are like my old boss, who would knock you hard with all kinds of harsh and bitter words and may even take some steps against you in the office to let you know that they are really not pleased with you.

Nevertheless, Solomon’s counsel to us is that we must not quit. Don’t quit because you are rebuked or corrected for your failure at work or for not meeting up with certain expectations of your leader. Yes, the words of rebuke or correction may be harsh and the sanctions against you unreasonable. It may even be that you are being punished unjustly for something you are not responsible for. Don’t run away or quit. Instead, remain calm and submissive. Why? It is because, as Solomon further points out, your calmness and submissiveness at such times can resolve whatever the problem is in ways beyond human imaginations.

See, no sane leader will remain angry forever with a submissive and calm subordinate, who is not arguing with him or trying to prove that he too knows something. At some point, his anger will subside. Then he also will be able to look at the matter at hand again and see whether he has judged correctly or not. If he has judged correctly, your submissiveness will most likely move him to show mercy. And if he has judged incorrectly, your submissiveness will make you earn his respect and perhaps rewards.

In addition to that, your submissiveness and calmness will help you too to look carefully at what you are being rebuked for, so that you may see whether you deserve to be so treated or not. And this way, you can learn to improve the quality of your work or work relationship and increase in usefulness and value. But if you quit your job or responsibility, just because someone is always yelling at you or condemning your work all the time, it will not be long before it becomes a habit for you. Then you won’t be able to stay under any form of serious leadership and develop the character you need to increase in usefulness.

And don’t miss my point here. I am not referring to a situation in which you allow yourself to be abused or misused because you are afraid to say ‘No’ to wrong things. Rather, I am talking about a situation in which you choose to develop the character that is needed for you to increase in usefulness and value, even though you are functioning under some hostile leadership. So, next time you have issues with any of your leaders, don’t immediately start thinking of quitting. Instead, start thinking of how you are going to use the situation to learn and increase in profitableness. And may God continue to produce in you all that you need to keep getting better in character and in handling whatever is committed to your trust, so that you may be a shining light wherever you are.

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By: J.O. Lawal | Date: August 05, 2020 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 3, No. 12