What are they Saying about You?

I heard an old story about a man waiting in line to use a pay phone (remember those?), and he could not help but overhear the one-sided conversation of the man in front of him. The gentleman on the phone began his call this way: “Hello, I have a lot of management experience, and I was calling to see if you are in need of a good, honest manager for your company…oh, I see. You already have a good, honest manager. Sorry to waste your time. Bye.” As he hung up the phone a smile spread across the face of the would-be-manager.

Curious, the man waiting for the phone had to find out why this other gentleman seemed happy by the news. “Excuse me,” he said. “I couldn’t help but hear your conversation. I expected you to be dejected when you found out that company wasn’t hiring. Might I ask why you are happy about it?”

With a grin, the other man answered, “I am the good, honest manager. I was just calling to make sure my job is safe.”

If you were to disguise your voice and call your boss from a different number, what would he say about you? Imagine if the manager heard something like, “As a matter of fact, we are looking for someone. We have someone right now, but he is lazy, he shows up late, leaves early, and takes two hours for lunch. Besides that, we can’t trust a word he says.”

Are you a good, honest employee? Let’s go even further. Are you a good, honest person? What are people saying about you behind your back? As ambassadors for Christ, we need to make sure we practice what we preach, that our lifestyle matches the message we proclaim. Paul told the Corinthian Christians that his goal was to live right in their eyes. One translation says he was, “taking pains” to live right before them. Can you say the same?  

For we aim at what is honorable, not only in the Lord's sight, but also in the sight of man.

2 Corinthians 8:21