Have You Ever Been Vetted?

Paula Deen. Ever heard of her?

Of course you have, if you enjoy food. Paula has made her living as one of the plethora of food experts to be found on cable television these days. There’s Emeril, Bobby Flay, Guy, and Rachael Ray. And … Paula.

The work Paula loved loved her back, with a lot of success on a leading food channel. And that, in turn, created opportunities galore for endorsements, speaking, books, and corporations to go along with branding. And let’s not forget those restaurants! Wow. 

Who could blame her for loving her work? In this case one could truly say, You are what you eat.

But then, Paula Deen was vetted. And now she is past tense. Her offense was using racist language years ago as a restaurant owner. Paula has admitted to the wrongdoing. And apologized. Not good enough for her corporate sponsors and television network. Her goose … is cooked.

Ironically, vetting also discovered a well known US Senator not only was a former KKK member, but led his local chapter. And yet, voters in his state re-elected him several times after the disclosure. Go figure.

Vetting has become in vogue. Often, it refers to those exhaustive background checks on politicians. The kind that reveal that some of our most trusted politicians and candidates don’t have the perfect character we might have hoped for in a public servant.

Vetting defined makes a careful and critical examination of something. Or more definitively, vetting seeks to ensure that someone is suitable for a job requiring secrecy, loyalty, or trustworthiness. 

You ever been vetted? It could be ugly. Imagine your current job being held in jeopardy because of the revelations of an unclean or immoral thought or act from your past. Imagine your trustworthiness coming into question because of white lies, minor indiscretions, and such.

In Proverbs 22, we find these words of wisdom: Choose a good reputation over great riches; being held in high esteem is better than silver or gold.

Truly ... who can stand before a righteous judge? None of us. All have sinned. We not only fall short of the glory of God, but we often fall short of the admiration of our fellow man. 

But Christ followers are challenged to be above reproach. To make clean dealings in our work and be people of integrity. Do that, and you need not fear vetting. Do that, and your work delivers richness in reputation. Do that …and there’s no need to try and “butter up” later.

That’s the way WE work. For Moody Radio, I’m Mark Elfstrand.