I know a man who agreed with me. In fact, his Bible was likely on his desk during one of the greatest consumer-product crises this nation has ever seen.

This crisis, known as the Tylenol tampering incident in 1982, involved several deaths in the Chicago community, and sparked officials to broadcast urgent warnings over public broadcast systems and loudspeakers from police vehicles for weeks. A nationwide recall of the acetaminophen product was issued, involving an estimated 31 million bottles with a retail value of over $100 million. This crisis led to reforms in the packaging of over-the-counter substances and to federal anti-tampering laws.

The leader of the company, James Burke, didn’t separate faith and work. He carried his faith with him to work daily. He lived by its creed and truth. On those days, with his company under attack, our company president had been at work with his Bible — probably a big thick one — to lead and guide his path. As an entry level territory manager at McNeil Consumer Products Company, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, during this time, I had been on the very front line of the incident, and it was prayers and God’s Word that sustained us through it. The example of James Burke, who was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his business leadership before he passed away in 2012, sustains me as a leader some three decades later.

God intends you to use your business experience to honor and glorify Him. This life is a journey with winding roads and peaks and valleys. Who else knows the journey better and can serve us as a guide on this path? Faith in the workplace is a non-negotiable. We are called to work and to live a fully integrated and balanced life. There should be no sacred and secular divide or split in living out of faith in the workplace and life. Eternal values should take precedent over temporal values.

Faith in the workplace can truly transform businesses, lives, communities and nations. We have to be bold, courageous, and lead with faith. A Kingdom leader is at his or her best when

• They are mature and equipped in their faith.

• They are a servant leader.

• They have the characteristics of humility, dependency on a greater power, sacrifice, forgiving, and able to surrender it all.

• They understand God is the sovereign one and in control of all things.

• They are motivated by the love of Christ and faith-focused.

• They have discovered a larger purpose for their work, business and life.

• They are family-faithful and truth-driven.

• They consciously focus on Kingdom capital and financial stewardship.

Don’t leave your faith at home or in the car. Transport it with you into the all of life, even the workplace.

[Listen to Terence on the Clouser on Business podcast click here: https://www.clouseronbusiness.com/business-redefined-how-christian-business-leaders-see-the-marketplace-differently/]

• Terence Chatmon is president and CEO of Fellowship of Companies for Christ International (FCCI), a global movement of CEOs and business leaders, united by a single vision: “Transforming the world through Christ, one company leader at a time.” FCCI equips and encourages Christian business leaders to operate their business and conduct their personal lives in accordance with biblical principles. For more information on the organization of FCCI visit www.fcci.org. Send us a picture of your Desk Top Bible to info@fcci.org.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/may/11/faith-at-work-carry-sundays-beliefs-into-mondays-w