“But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him.”

I just finished up serving on a college Dean search Committee.  I was the only non-academic on the committee and I learned a lot.  In most businesses, we don’t hire like higher education or even how a non-profit might hire by using a committee.  What is also unique is that in higher education, once the committee narrows down the final candidates, those candidates go public at their home institutions and basically tell their current employer that they are going to publicly present and interview for another job.  I found it quite courageous of these candidates to do so.  Imagine that happening in our businesses?  We’d be so freaked out we wouldn’t know which way is up.  And then another thing happens that is more common for all of us and that is a list of references are checked by the search firm of the committee.  But, that list is a list of people who are given to us by the candidate that are pretty much expected to be positive references.  But then the final list of references gets added onto by broadening the circle to those that the candidate has not given, but who would know them and have an experience with them.  This is where it gets interesting.  Going, “off-list” is when we start to learn about the other goods and bads of a candidate.  Too many times in business we just stay on the list given to us, or don’t broaden the circle enough.  One or two extra circles out can be where the truth is found.

So, if we were being referenced for our faith, who would be on the list and what would they say?  And, more importantly, when going, “off list” as the circles broaden, what do you think would be said?

Reference: 1 John 2:5 (New Living Translation)