當你聽到「辦公室裡的愛」這幾個字時，會想到什麼呢？是同事之間的浪漫關係嗎？有些工作場所禁止這樣的「情誼」，有一些工作場所則會阻止這樣的關係，或是把事情藏在檯面下。但是，有沒有一種辦公室裡的愛，不需要也不應該被遏止，更不用被掩蓋呢？

我指的是經常在聖經中看到的那種愛。例如，耶穌在許多場合告訴他的跟隨者要「愛人如己」（馬太福音22章39節）。在這句話的前面一句則是「最大的誡命」：「盡心、盡性、盡意愛主你的神」（馬太福音22章37節）。

好吧，這句經文聽起來不錯，非常適合宗教或屬靈的場合。但是，在競爭激烈的商場和專業的領域裡呢？就像一首歌的歌詞：「愛與它有什麼關係呢？」然而，當我們仔細觀察時，會發現愛能夠且應該幫助我們自處，並和職場中的其他人建立關係。

耶穌所說的愛神以及愛人如己，並不是我們和關心的人在一起時產生的情感和溫暖的感覺。而是說我們要在所做的每一件事情中尊敬、榮耀上帝，並在過程中真誠關心他人，包括同工、同事、老闆、客戶和供應商。

想想聖經中關於愛最偉大的陳述：「神愛世人，甚至將他的獨生子賜給他們，叫一切信他的，不致滅亡，反得永生。」（約翰福音3章16節）這絕對不是那種「擁抱和親吻」的愛，這是神聖的愛和犧牲，人類無法完全理解。然而，我們卻可以每天從中受益。

從人類的角度來講，我們無法複製這種深不可測的愛。但與此同時，作為耶穌的信徒，我們被要求向我們周圍的人展示真誠甚至是犧牲的愛，無論是在家裡、工作的地方，或是我們的社區裡。耶穌說：「人為朋友捨命，人的愛心沒有比這個大的。」（約翰福音15章13節）

在現實生活中，每個人的做法有所不同，部分取決於我們所處的環境。下面是兩個範例：

把別人放在第一位。在商業的世界中，常聽到的口號是：「追求第一、顧好自己」，這不是我們從聖經中得到的教導。「不可貪圖虛浮的榮耀；只要存心謙卑，各人看別人比自己強。各人不要單顧自己的事，也要顧別人的事。」（腓立比書2章3-4節）

追求給予而不是接受。一般的情況下，人會追求當下所能得到的一切，但是聖經的命令取而代之的是，追求付出自己的一切。「……又當記念主耶穌的話，說：『施比受更為有福。』」（使徒行傳20章35節）

© 2020. Robert J. Tamasy 是企業巔峰: 給今日職場從箴言而來永恆的智慧 一書的作者。也與導師之心的作者David A. Stoddard 合著Tufting Legacies。編輯多本著作包括Mike Landry. Bob的書: 透過苦難成長。Mike Landry. Bob的網站為www.bobtamasy-readywriterink.com, 他的雙週部落格為: www.bobtamasy.blogspot.com

備註：如果你手上有聖經，想閱讀更多有關聖經所提出的原則，請參考以下的經文：

約翰福音13章34-35節
13:34 我賜給你們一條新命令，乃是叫你們彼此相愛；我怎樣愛你們，你們也要怎樣相愛。
13:35 你們若有彼此相愛的心，眾人因此就認出你們是我的門徒了。」

帖撒羅尼迦前書3章12節
3:12 又願主叫你們彼此相愛的心，並愛眾人的心都能增長，充足，如同我們愛你們一樣，

約翰一書4章7-12節
4:7 親愛的弟兄啊，我們應當彼此相愛，因為愛是從　神來的。凡有愛心的，都是由　神而生，並且認識神。
4:8 沒有愛心的，就不認識神，因為神就是愛。
4:9神差他獨生子到世間來，使我們藉著他得生，神愛我們的心在此就顯明了。
4:10 不是我們愛神，乃是神愛我們，差他的兒子為我們的罪作了挽回祭，這就是愛了。
4:11 親愛的弟兄啊，神既是這樣愛我們，我們也當彼此相愛。
4:12 從來沒有人見過神，我們若彼此相愛，神就住在我們裏面，愛他的心在我們裏面得以完全了。

反省與問題討論

1. 聽到「辦公室（或工作場所）裡的愛」這幾個字時，你會立即聯想到什麼？
2. 本篇週一嗎哪對「辦公室裡的愛」的不同解釋是否改變或挑戰了你原本的看法？如果是，有什麼具體改變？
3. 你是否在工作場合上看過本篇所描述的「辦公室裡的愛」？如果有，當時情況如何？如果你是當事人，當時感覺如何？
4. 你今天會如何嘗試在自己的工作場所中，表現出以他人為中心、無私的愛？你覺得這很困難嗎？請解釋你的答案。

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LOVE IN THE OFFICE THAT CANNOT BE DISCOURAGED

By Robert J. Tamasy

When you hear the term, “love in the office,” what comes to mind? A romantic relationship between coworkers or colleagues, perhaps? Some workplaces forbid such “fraternization,” while others merely discourage it or insist such relationships be kept discreet. But what about a kind of love in the office that cannot nor should not be discouraged, with no cause for discretion?

What I am referring to is the kind of love we often see described in the Bible. For instance, Jesus on numerous occasions told His followers to, “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39). This was preceded by what He called the “greatest commandment” – to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).

Well, that sounds nice and fits well for religious or spiritual settings. But what about the everyday, dog-eat-dog, highly competitive business and professional world? As one song put it, “what’s love got to do with it?” Actually, when we look closer, we see that love can – and should – have a lot to do with how we conduct ourselves and relate to others in the marketplace.

Looking back at what Jesus said about loving God and loving our neighbors as ourselves, this does not refer to the emotional, warm, fuzzy feelings we get when we are around people we care about. This is about revering and honoring God in all we do, and in the process, demonstrating sincere interest and care for others – including colleagues, coworkers, bosses, customers and suppliers.

Think about perhaps the greatest single statement about love in the Scriptures: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). This definitely was not a hugs-and-kisses kind of love. It was an expression of divine love – and sacrifice – that the human mind cannot fully comprehend. Yet every day of our lives, we can benefit from this.

There is no way humanly speaking we can replicate this unfathomable form of love, but at the same time, as followers of Jesus we are called to demonstrate sincere, even sacrificial love to those around us, whether it be where we work, in our homes, or our communities. Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).

What this looks like in a real-life situation will differ from one person to the next, partly depending on the circumstances we find ourselves in. But here are a couple of examples:

Living others by putting them first. Often in the business world, the mantra is, “Looking out for No. 1 – look out for yourself,” This is not the admonition we receive from the Scriptures. “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better (more important) than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others” (Philippians 2:3-4).

Seeking to give rather than to receive. The natural tendency is to seek whatever we can get out of a situation, but the biblical command is to instead, seek how much we can give.. “…the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’” (Acts 20:35).

© 2020. Robert J. Tamasy has written numerous books, including Marketplace Ambassadors: CBMC’s Continuing Legacy of Evangelism and Discipleship; Business at Its Best: Timeless Wisdom from Proverbs for Today’s Workplace; Tufting Legacies;The Heart of Mentoring, coauthored with David A. Stoddard; and has edited other books. Bob’s biweekly blog is: www.bobtamasy.blogspot.com.

Reflection/Discussion Questions

1. Thinking of the phrase, “love in the office” (or the workplace), what immediately comes to your mind? 
2. Has this “Monday Manna’s” different perspective about love expressed in a marketplace setting  changed or challenged your thinking on this? If so, in what ways?
3. Have you ever seen “love” demonstrated in a workplace setting, as it has been described here? If so, what did that look like? If it was shown toward you, how did it feel?
4. How would you go about trying to communicate and display an others-oriented, unselfish kind of love in your own working environment today? How difficult do you think it would be for you to do so? Explain your answer.

NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more about principles it presents, consider the following passages:

John 13:34-35; 1 Thessalonians 3:12; 1 Peter 4:8-10; 1 John 4:7-12

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