Conspicuous Christianity

I know what Jesus said about wearing your faith on your sleeve. Matthew 6 starts out with a lot of “do nots” in this area. Starting in verse 1: "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.”

But at work, I feel like I need to be somewhat conspicuous in my faith, so I can hold the weird world of work at bay. At the same time, since I’m at work, I’m also nervous about being too overt about my faith. So I try to subtly achieve what I call Conspicuous Christianity. I try to adorn my workspace with things that communicate what my values are.

So I no longer have the life-size inflatable Jesus (that was too conspicuous). The things I have are a bit more restrained. In fact, you may not even notice them at first (unlike the six-foot inflatable). Consider what you’ll find if you come into my office:

- A Bible verse a day calendar
- Handwritten notes all over my desk with favorite scriptures (including my life verse, Romans 12:2, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed, by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the will of God, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”
- Some favorite devotions from the Marketplace Leaders daily e-mail from Os Hillman tacked to my wall. (You can sign up at http://www.marketplaceleaders.org/)
- Three polished aluminum letters that spell D-a-d. (A father’s day gift from my favorite little urchins a few years ago.)
- Six different photographs of those same young’uns and their mother scattered around my work area.
- A wonderful collage of photos, autographed by those same kids, with Psalm 103:13 in the frame. (“As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him.”)
- A Bible on my desk. And not one of those little New Testament ones that the Gideons hand out on college campuses, either. This is a big honking King James Version Family Generations Heirloom Bible with the Words of Jesus in Red. (OK, just kidding, it’s a little one tucked discreetly in the corner. As I said, you get points for subtlety.)

I have those things around me for a couple reasons. First, they remind me on a minute-by-minute basis what is truly important to me. They help keep me grounded when I start to drift.

Second, they are meant to be conspicuous reminders to other people what kind of person I am – or at least what kind of person I aspire to be. I’ve been able to have some very positive conversations with co-workers who come into my office and know what kind of person I am, because of the signals I send through my actions and my office knick-knacks.

Finally, these things act as a form of accountability for me. If people see that this is what I aspire to, every time I say something that doesn’t glorify God, they can hold me accountable. Even if they don’t believe in the values I do – and especially if they don’t – showing everyone the faith I aspire to helps keep me accountable for my actions.

Fortunately, I work in a place that allows someone to have those elements around. It’s a blessing for me. And maybe for others.

What about you? What have you put in your office to help tell people who you are? Have you ever been challenged by having those things? Share your story.