Thinking of life as a gift and a calling to share the gospel message of the Lord
Jesus Christ changes one's mindset and viewpoint of life. The scripture in the
book of 1 Peter 2: 21 describes that we have been called to spread the gospel as
taught by Jesus, who suffered and died on the cross for our sake (New
International Version, 1 Peter 2:21). Therefore, the Bible verse urges Christians to
follow in Christ's footsteps in leading meaningful lifestyles and be models for
others. Thinking of the biblical message opened my eyes to the contentious issue
of the tension between Christianity and psychology. Now I see myself as an object
to perpetuate God's work through Christianity and psychology in the service of
man and God. I see the integrationist view of psychology and Christianity as the
best approach to offering service while being loyal to God and Christianity. The
transformational Christian worldview of restoring humankind has inspired how I
see my research area and dealings with people.
The field selected for the research is the employer and employee relationship,
problem-solving, and stability in the workplace. The view of Christianity as a
source of knowledge in embodying workplace virtues and ethics has been one of
the ways I started to see Christianity in my research area (Johnson, 2010). I
believe that godly character and behavior should extend to the workplace other
than just being implemented in the church. Moreover, I think that offices should
have more Christian virtues implemented into the terms and conditions of the
companies or organizations to make the workplace more tolerant of diverse
individuals such as employers and employees.
I believe in applying positive psychology in my research area to find solutions
between employer and employee conflicts. Positive psychology has universal
human virtues which intersect with the Christian worldview, which crosses cultures
and traditions (Johnson, 2010). Therefore, using a Christian worldview approach in
tandem with positive psychology in my research area would increase the likelihood
of finding universal solutions in the workplace. Christian psychology intertwined
with a biblical counseling view is my most preferred approach for bolstering the
relationships between employers and employees in the organization. I believe it is
the best approach because it uses Christian perspectives and virtues to promote
scripture-driven problem-solving methodologies in the organization.
The biblical worldview of restoring humankind is vital to the research area. The
biblical worldview describes that people from all cultures, traditions, and ethnicities
are God's creation and should be treated equally and fairly (Johnson, 2010).
Galatians 3:28 makes it clear that there is neither Jew nor Greek, male nor female
in the eyes of the Lord (New International Version, Galatians 3:28). The death of
Jesus on the cross freed and restored the tainted link between God and man;
however, due to the redemptive power of Jesus' death, people from all walks of
life should have freedom (Wolters, 2005). The workplace, especially in the age of
globalization, means more diversity and challenges in the interactions between
employers and employees. However, understanding God's universal love,
redemption, and restoration of humanity mean that all workers and employers in
the workplace should work harmoniously to achieve stability and sustainability.
References
Johnson, E. (2010). Psychology and Christianity: Five Views (2nd ed.). Downers
Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. ISBN: 9780830828487.
New International Version. (2008). Zondervan Publishing House, 1984.
Wolters, A. M. (2005). Creation Regained: Biblical Basics for a Reformational
Worldview (Second). William B. Eerdmans Pub. ISBN: 9780802829696.
