Cafeteria Christianity: Approval — Wednesday
Proverbs 22:1
A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold. (NIV)
I was midway through the spring semester of my 1L year in law school when my fellow law students and I began to prepare for the coveted on-campus interviews. These interviews determined where you would land the all-important summer internship—and that’s if you got an interview at all. The internships we landed played a vital role in getting a job after law school. Law school taught us how to think like a lawyer; our internships would help determine what type of lawyer we were going to become.
That summer, I worked for an influential lobbyist in property and land-use law. Under her guidance, I navigated municipal codes, researched complex yet narrow-focused legal issues, and coordinated efforts with other civic organizations while championing causes before elected officials. I landed the position I sought out. Everything was falling into place. I received the fellowship I applied for to study property and real estate law. I was also accepted into and would soon start my Master's program in Municipal Planning. I was on track to become the type of lawyer I wanted to be: a Land Use and Zoning Attorney.
One afternoon after sitting through hours of government meetings, my boss took me out to lunch. She had a candid conversation with me. Over the course of the summer, we interacted with dozens of other attorneys, listened to their legal arguments, and battled them in the legislature. Most importantly, she let me know the ones she trusted and the ones she did not. She looked at me and said something so simple yet profound to me that day. She said, “Parker, your reputation is everything. Your name is only as good as your word. You get to decide.”
I spent the first year of law school thinking about what type of lawyer I was going to be but failed to consider what type of person I was going to be. Jesus said, “But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one” (Matthew 5:37, NKJV). Just before that in verse 16, He also said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” There is a reputation you can build that glorifies your own name or a reputation that glorifies our Father in heaven. You get to decide.
Wednesday’s Reflection
Reflect on Ecclesiastes 7:1—“A good reputation is more valuable than costly perfume. And the day you die is better than the day you are born” (NLT). If your name is only as good as your word, what reputation are you leaving behind?