Categories: uncategorized
Date: 02 April 2008 15:38:11
Today I went to visit a rehab to do a review on a guy who went in for drug and alcohol treatment about 10 weeks ago. When I assessed him in prison in November he had already come on leaps and bounds, but the change in him now is quite extraordinary. Half way through our conversation he told me that he became a Christian about 6 weeks ago and that he feels much more peaceful. He started talking about grace, mercy, justice, forgiveness and love. All this from an individual who's life has been categorised by abuse, violence, illness and drug and alcohol abuse. At one point in the conversation he quoted the first line of a song he really likes and I quoted back the next two lines, at which point he realised I am also a Christian. He asked me why he never knew I am a Christian and I replied that it is difficult working in a secular job to be overt about my faith, instead I seek for it to inspire all that I do and give me hope and strength in my work and life.
This conversation started me wondering whether I should be more open about my faith at work, and yet when I asked him if he would have treated me differently if he knew I was a Christian he replied “Nah. I would have though you were one of those vile do-gooders. I certainly wouldn't have been honest with you.” I guess it is a Catch-22 situation. Some people wouldn't give too hoots that I have a faith, others would find it a hard concept to deal with.
In this case we ended up having a fantastic conversation, and the discussion continued with his counsellor who is also a Christian (as it is a faith based rehab) and that also brought up some interesting stuff in my own head about the fact that I rarely push faith-based resources as I don't want to be seen as pressurising people to subscribe to my beliefs.
A very interesting day which has given me a lot to think about.