Latest / Prayer Before Work / My Boss Said I'm Not Committed, Because I Leave at 5 PM - Prayer Before Work
Transcript
- Sean Graver: Your boss just told you that you're not cut out for this career, and the actual evidence he gave was that you go home at a normal hour on Friday. Hey, this is Sean. Welcome back to Prayer Before Work. Now, maybe it wasn't about a Friday night to you. Maybe it was about being a parent who leaves at five to pick up your kids, or being single and somehow having that used against you instead of for you. Or or simply not being willing to treat exhaustion like a badge of honor. Whatever the specifics, someone looked at the hours on your calendar and decided that told them everything they need to know about your character and your commitment. And it didn't, not even close. Now there's a moment early on in first Samuel where God sends the prophet Samuel to anoint a king from among Jesse's sons. Now Samuel looks at the oldest son, he sees someone tall and impressive, and he assumes that's obviously the one. And God stops him right there. In first Samuel sixteen, verse seven, he says, Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart. Now that verse gets used a lot for looks and appearances, but it it applies just as directly here. Your boss looked at an outward measurement, the hours logged, and made a judgment about something he can't actually see. Your competence, your dedication, your character. He confused a schedule with a soul, and that says something about the limits of his judgment. It doesn't say anything true about you, but here's what I'd ask you to hold on to if you're in this spot. You don't need to win the argument. Or prove your worth to someone who's already decided not to see it clearly. Sometimes the healthiest response isn't a defense, it's an exit. Done with your integrity intact instead of a scene that you'll regret. So document what was said if you need to. Talk to someone you trust, who actually knows your work, and if the door opens somewhere else, somewhere that measures you by what you actually produce instead of what time you leave, don't feel guilty about walking through it. Being underestimated by someone with limited vision, it's not a verdict on you. It's just information about them. So let's pray. Lord, it hurts to be judged for something that has nothing to do with our actual character or our actual work. But help us to not internalize a verdict that was never fair to begin with. I mean, give us clarity about when to stand and explain ourselves and when just to simply walk towards something better. And remind us that you see what's actually true about us, even when the people over us don't. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Go make today count.