5 Steps To Dealing With Compromise In Business

If you are a Christian in business, then you have been compelled to compromise your faith (or how you exercise it) at some point. It may have come in the form of a small decision. Maybe it came in the form of a big one. Whatever the case, there are many opportunities to compromise. We need to be aware of this and fight hard to stand firm.

Some Examples

It really does not matter if you are the business owner or if you work for someone else. Either way, people will come to you with decisions or directives that can impact the way you walk out your Christian faith at work. Let’s take a look at some examples.

Let’s say you are the business owner and you want to open your meetings with prayer. This is not a problem until someone mentions that you may offend someone that has other beliefs. You then have a choice to make…do you continue with prayer and risk offending someone? Or do you compromise and stop praying in meetings?

What about the holiday season at the end of the year? You like to collect and send Christmas cards, but your boss says you are not allowed to display them at your desk because they are offensive.

More Compromise

Maybe you are the owner of the business and want to paint your store-front windows with Christmas messages and images, but you think it may turn off your non-Christian customers. Do you move forward or not?

Another example might come up in relation to donating money. Maybe it is your conviction that you will only give financial support to faith-based organizations, but your company is encouraging 100% employee participation in giving to an organization that is not faith-based. What if the organization is not just neutral, but actually promotes behavior or activities that oppose your Christian faith? Is this an easier decision?

What Is The Answer?

What do you do?

I could go on and on about various examples of when you might be asked to compromise what you believe you should do as a disciple of Jesus Christ. The truth is that many of these examples can be argued both ways. There is rarely a clear black and white answer as to which is right and which is wrong.

5 Steps

My advice is to follow these 5 steps in each situation you face. If you will do this, I believe you will find the right answers.

1.) Pray!
Take the time to earnestly seek God for wisdom and insight. If the situation arises and you have time to pray, then do so before you make a decision (Nehemiah 2:1-5). God is faithful to give you this wisdom. The decision will likely be clear – whether you like it or not.

Of course, there are times we don’t feel we have the time to pray for a decision. Maybe we are forced into a quick reaction. For these times, you should be continuously praying ahead of time for Him to give you the discernment to make the right decision as the circumstances present themselves.

2.) Relax!
That may be an odd way to express it, but I think you get the idea. Just remember that we are not called to argue over the small stuff (2 Timothy 2:14, 23-25). While it may be something that gets under our skin, it may not be worth ruining our witness to get what we want.

People are watching us and our reactions. If all we ever do is bluster and complain about the smallest of issues regarding our faith, they will clearly be turned away. This is not our goal at all!

3.) Be Bold!
At risk of contradicting myself, there are times to be bold. While there are certainly some issues that are not worth arguing about, there are others that are central to our faith. When faced with compromise in an area like this, we are called to act.

The road we take is described by Jesus as a narrow one (Matthew 7:13-14). It is one that promises us trouble (John 16:33). Sometimes, we have to trust God as provider and step out in action against the flow. When this happens, He is faithful to take care of us (Psalm 91).

4.) Share!
Regardless of the situation, be prepared to share your reasons for the actions you took (1 Peter 3:15). People around you are likely going to ask and you need to be ready. Don’t miss these opportunities to share your faith…they are given to you by God!

Obviously, this goes much better if you have prayed through your decision and can back it up with Scripture. When you share, do so with humility and love. The impact on those you are sharing with will be powerful!

5.) Be Prepared!
Here is the fun part! If you successfully navigate a situation where you are asked to compromise your faith and someone is eternally impacted as a result, God is going to give you more opportunities (Matthew 25:21)! In fact, the next ones will be even tougher!

That’s right. To the extent that you show you are capable of remaining faithful to Him in tough situations, He will reward you with tougher ones. In fact, He is looking to and fro over the earth to find those who are fully committed to Him. It is these people He will strengthen (2 Chronicles 16:9). It is situations like this that He will use to strengthen them!

Have you been in a position to compromise in one of these ways?

How did you handle it – stand firm or compromise?

Could these 5 steps help in future situations?