Beyond Your Resume (Prayer Devotional for the week of April 27, 2014)

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Twice in my career, so far, I have been tasked with building a team from scratch. As a hiring supervisor, I looked for a number of traits as I interviewed people, but I especially hoped to find folks who would bring useful skills and creative ideas to the table, demonstrate flexibility and a willingness to learn, and complement the group dynamic. That doesn’t mean that I wanted an office full of mini-me clones; however, we naturally had some similarities in our work histories and basic skills.

When I consider how Jesus selected his team of disciples, it doesn’t make much sense to me, from a supervisory perspective. It seems as though he just picked people off the street, with no real consideration of their qualifications. He chose fishermen whose education level was likely very minimal and assigned them the high-profile job of preaching and teaching his message. He even chose a tax collector – one of the most stereotypically crooked professions of all time – as a close confidant.

Jesus put together a team of individuals who, in any other context, might have little reason ever to interact with each other, much less drop everything and live in community together with a homeless prophet for the next few years.

I think what Jesus cared about most of all was not a bullet-point list of achievements on his disciples’ resumes, how many initials they used after their names, or even their connections in the community (because you and I both know that all of those things carry weight in today’s society, for better or for worse). Instead, he cared about their willingness to simply, “Come, follow me” (see Mark 1:16-18 and elsewhere).

Perhaps you know Scripture like the back of your hand because you were raised in church and spent summers attending Vacation Bible School and church camps. Or, maybe you came to faith more recently, and you are embarrassed to even pray aloud because you don’t feel knowledgeable or articulate enough. Regardless of where you sit between either extreme, let me reassure you that when he asks you to follow him, you are qualified to serve on Jesus’ team! Don’t let a supposed lack of qualifications on paper keep you from being willing to lead when he calls you to. (On the flip side, don’t let a litany of leadership qualifications keep you from being willing to serve, either.)

The catch-22 of relocating

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Q: What do these pictures have in common with each other?

The view from my seats in McLane Stadium, opening football season 2014

The view from my seats in McLane Stadium, opening football season 2014

 

Cedar Canyon: Cedar Breaks National Monument, Utah (photo credit: Google Maps — click for a gorgeous, panoramic photo tour)

Cedar Canyon: Cedar Breaks National Monument, Utah (photo credit: Google Maps — click for a gorgeous, panoramic photo tour)

 

A: Not a darn thing.

 

Actually, I guess that’s not completely accurate. The images above have one thing potentially in common: me.

In the case of the football stadium screen shot, my window of opportunity to renew my season tickets at the brand-new stadium occurred this morning at 10:06am. I had to log on within a two-minute timeframe to select my seats, and since season ticket allotments are already sold out, you could run the risk of losing your seats entirely if you don’t renew during your appointed time.

It’s very exciting, seeing as I’ve been at this university for 10 years, and for most of that time, you could hardly give away tickets to watch the Bears play football, much less sell them. But now, everyone is counting down the days until football season begins! (Even those who don’t care about football are pumped up, because school spirit has never been stronger.)

So, I eagerly logged on and bought my tickets. The catch-22 is that there’s a chance I might not be able to use them, which brings us to the landscape photo. (For my Texas friends: those bumpy things in the background are called mountains.) 🙂

The photo above is a street-view screenshot from Google Maps, which I linked to a breathtaking photo tour of Cedar Breaks National Monument. There are places of such beauty like this on Earth where I think that sometimes God must lean back and smile as he says to himself, “Wow, I’m good.”

The reason I shared that photo is because I’m heading that direction next week for a job interview! I’ll share more details if it actually comes through, but this is a follow-up to a Skype interview that we had last month. It’s for a faculty position and seems right up my alley, in terms of my preparedness and the direction I’d like to see my career go. I like what I’ve learned about the university; the public schools in the area sound good; property taxes are about 4-5 times less than what I’m currently paying; we’re supposed to hit the 90s this weekend, whereas it’s still in the 60s & 70s there … the “pros” list goes on & on.

There are “cons,” as well, and I haven’t overlooked them. The football tickets are a bit tongue-in-cheek, because if it really came down to it, then I could sell them. Besides, the Bears are playing so well now, odds are good that several of the games will be televised beyond just our local region. More important “cons” include leaving family, friends, church, and the sheer logistics of relocating. But, those aren’t insurmountable obstacles, and I’m hopeful that my path will be pretty clear in the coming weeks.

I hesitated to share anything here about the interview, but several of you have been so faithful to pray with and for me over the years, and I would appreciate your prayers for this season of my life, as well.

On the bright side, if the job doesn’t work out, I still have football to look forward to. 🙂