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staying true to your faith in a secular workplace

Writer's picture: Cheryl BoydCheryl Boyd

Editor's note: I (Daren Overstreet) have spoken in numerous places about navigating our secular culture with grace and conviction. It's not easy, and I happen to be a minister who works with a lot of believers. However, I encounter Christians all the time, with secular jobs, who confess it is getting more and more difficult to stand firm in a world that is increasingly hostile to Christianity.


Once, while at a conference and selling my book, a woman came up to me in tears and told me she had decided she could no longer be a public school teacher in a certain district– her conscience would not allow her to do or say the things required. Another man told me he was being pressured to list his pronouns. Yet another said he, as an executive in a company, was expected to go and march in a pride parade, something he courageously declined to do. Recently a young female college student sought advice from me on how to pursue a degree in medicine while being asked to commit to some ideas that conflicted with her faith. The list goes on, and the struggle for Christians these days is real.


Our guest writer, Cheryl Boyd, is a Women's Ministry Leader in the Bridge Church in Portland, Oregon. Before that, she practiced internal medicine for 37 years. Having just retired in 2024, she reflected on how difficult it became to faithfully perform her job while standing strong with Biblical values. In this short but powerful article, she shares some principles that helped her remain steadfast in her faith, and proficient in her job. It wasn't easy, and we pray the truths she shares here can provide hope for people in similar situations. At the end of her article, there is a very helpful resource.


A typical day…


I read my Bible and pray in the morning and then I go to my office. I am greeted by a rainbow poster in the lobby. I open my computer and there is an announcement of a new online training about "transitioning protocols the primary care doctor can manage". My first patient is asking for the morning-after pill… Living in our world is really difficult as a Christian no matter what our job is.


I practiced internal medicine for 37 years in a variety of environments and have experienced all kinds of "cognitive dissidence". God's mission and vision for humanity is clear, and I believe it, but the world shouts the opposite. The "go and make disciples of all nations" vision is hard to reconcile with the reality that I work daily with a team that I see more than my family or fellow disciples, and who find the Bible archaic, even harmful – at least at the moment.


God has shown me that I can find within the Bible all the examples I need to help me live in this age. The politics, the technology, and the names have changed, but the fundamental situations and temptations remain the same: I obey God or not; people need grace and truth; there is objective and true morality; God is God and there is no other.


I would like to share a few convictions that have allowed me to live a joyful life as a Christian in the world, while faithfully practicing as a medical doctor.


first, to steady myself as a Christian:


  1. God is real and His character is completely perfect in loving faithfulness (Hebrew - hesed), justice (mishpat), and goodness (towb). The full dimensions of his character are not limited by this list but these I have come to understand and trust. In a world that refuses to acknowledge God, he is as real as ever. One of my favorite scriptures of late is Number 23: 19 God is not human, that he should lie, nor a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?

  2. If God is ok with me, then I'm ok. I have been through personal and professional nightmares (with likely more to come) but this has been my practice and comfort: complete nakedness before God with all the good, bad, and really bad. I strive to present, even drag myself before the Lord, and trusted others in order to say what the Holy Spirit has revealed to me so that I have a clear conscience. When and if I have to speak the truth, there is nothing to fear, for my approval comes from God and not men.


Second, to care about the people around me:


  1. Now is the time of salvation – Until Jesus returns, this is the time of salvation. People are lost and in need of redemption. I can have perpetual hope for others to come around to God's way of thinking without pressure to give up. I can love and keep caring while being open about my faith and my God as opportunity permits. I need to be shrewd, but when the opportunity to share about the source of my hope presents itself, I faithfully lean into it.

  2. God doesn't let me be tempted beyond what I am able to bear. There have been some pleasant surprises. For example, he has provided ways for me to arrange with other doctors to do the things that I cannot do in good conscience, while I help them in some way. This has led to great conversations about the teachings of God in the Bible as they relate to issues of the day. Let's not limit how God can work.

  3. I need to follow the example of those like Nehemiah, Daniel, and Jesus - who all did their work well. I can't expect God to be respected if I am slack in my work. I work hard, knowing that striving in my career is for God, it is purposeful.

  4. Jesus engaged others by asking great questions while manifesting both grace and truth simultaneously. Imitating Jesus in these ways is a daily goal. Jesus exhibited grace and truth in perfect balance, but often gained access to peoples' hearts by practicing curiosity. I try to practice this in every setting.


Finally, I reassure myself with the reality that times have always been difficult for God's people, Christians have always been a cultural minority. What cultural issues were alive in Rome in Biblical times, or on into the Middle Ages? Many were as intense, or more intense than we see today. Without opposition like Jesus received, who would need faith? I think God wants to bring us all around to the knowledge that He's been faithfully and lovingly working with humanity since the beginning of time – and continues now - and even long after I am gone. There will not be a time in this world when Christians do not struggle to be counter-cultural.


I remind myself of these simple principles each day, and they give me the strength to remain faithful to God and his mission in the midst of an increasingly secular environment.


May God bless you and provide you with strength as you continue to remain strong and faithful in your calling and career.


Cheryl Boyd


Cheryl Boyd, MD is currently the Woman’s Ministry Leader in the Bridge Church of Christ in Portland, OR, alongside her husband, Kelly. Her life accomplishments are being baptized into Christ as a single, becoming a mother of three children, and practicing internal medicine in many settings over 37 years while also serving in the ministry in various churches in the USA. She fully retired from medicine in 2024. She can be reached at cjboyd5@yahoo.com.



We would like to recommend the book Resilient, by David Young. In it, he succinctly addresses the challenges facing Christians today as they seek to remain a faithful cultural minority. He offers advice for how to exhibit compassion and grace, while standing firm for God in all kinds of settings. It is practical and timely, and we believe you will find a variety of helpful advice as you seek to honor God in your own secular setting.


Also, we intend to offer a webinar on this topic soon, so stay tuned!

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