“Everything in me will celebrate when you speak what is right.”

A differentiation in the workplace, from the beginning of what is defined as “work”, has been initiative.  Seldom do we hear someone say, “She takes too much initiative”.  And if we do, then it’s usually a backhanded compliment and we don’t really want to them to stop taking that initiative.  So, we do want people to “throw their hat in the ring”. I read where this statement comes from. President Woodrow Wilson was being pushed to announce that he would run for a second term.  At the time, one of the most public and most covered by the media events was the traveling circus. So, while one night when President Wilson was at the circus, the Ringmaster (from what was to become the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Baily Circus) egged him on until finally President Wilson made his declaration that he would run again by taking off his top hat (common wardrobe at that time) and throwing it into the circus ring, thereby establishing for as long we can imagine, the best-known term way of indicating that someone is taking initiative; “throwing your hat in the ring.”  Yes, we want people who want to have lots of hats in the ring.

When we consider how we are to bring glory to God in our work, it might be that each and every day God is asking us to “throw our hat in the ring” for Him. I know how hard it is to speak of our love for Jesus in the workplace, but while we search personally for the best way to introduce Him to others, we can each and every day “work out” our faith in all that we do.  We do have moments for us to “throw in our hats” and when those moments do come, let’s be ready to do so!

Reference: Proverbs 23:16 (New Living Translation)