Today's Passage - 1 Timothy 6:1-2

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english 1 Timothy 6:1-2        All who are under the yoke of slavery should consider their masters worthy of full respect, so that God's name and our teaching may not be slandered. Those who have believing masters should not show them disrespect just because they are fellow believers. Instead, they should serve them even better because their masters are dear to them as fellow believers and are devoted to the welfare of their slaves.  These are the things you are to teach and insist on.              When we work for someone else, we need to respect our manager or supervisor. No matter how the manager treats us, we should respect him because God has put us in this position. Like Joseph in the Old Testament, from the time he was sold to Egypt, he met a series of unfortunate events, and none of the positions he had were what he wanted. But the Bible says no matter where he was, God gave him success in whatever he did and he had favor before his masters. It is not because his masters were all so good, but because of his attitude of respect towards his managers. When a person respects his manager, the manager knows. That's why Joseph can be successful in whatever he did. Actually his managers were not believers in the Lord, but when they saw the faith of Joseph, they kept it in their hearts. When the opportunity came, the Egyptian Pharaoh had a dream which no one can interpret, the warden immediately remembers Joseph because of his faithfulness and good example in his work.       If your manager does not treat you well, you need to first pray for yourself and ask God to give you wisdom to know how to have good relations with the manager. Next, you need to pray in the Lord's name for the manager. Ask God to be the help for the manager. If your manager is a Christian, you should not expect special treatment from him. Rather, you need to be even more respectful and pray for him, wishing him to be successful. Many Christians make two kinds of mistakes toward their manager.        First, it is to not take their own responsibility seriously, thinking that since the manager is a believer, he should be more empathetic towards him, occasionally he can slack off or take time off and he will receive special grace from the manager. I often hear Christian managers say they discover when they hire Christian workers it caused themselves big headaches because the workers were not diligent in their work. This is truly a pity for Christians.          Second, it is to have the wrong expectations for the Christian manager, thinking that since he is a believer, the manager should treat me especially well and he should promote me first. When the manager doesn't do according to your expectations, you don't feel good. Or when you see the manager not making the best decisions, you may easily look down on the manager. You need to remember that the manager is just a normal Christian. He can stumble and can make mistakes. Rather during those times, we need to bless him, pray for him, and not complain or curse him. In your work, have you prayed for blessings on your manager? From today, begin to do this and you will be blessed.      Pray with Pastor Tong           Dear Lord, I especially pray for blessings on my manager. I ask the Lord to bless whatever he does to be successful and let him know you and have a heart of reverence for you so that in all his decisions he can make it according to your will. I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!