Background Check

Background Check

King Darius sent this message to the people of every race and nation and language throughout the world: “Peace and prosperity to you! I decree that everyone throughout my kingdom should tremble with fear before the God of Daniel. For he is the living God, and he will endure forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and his rule will never end.” Daniel 6:25-26

When I was appointed to the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation, the FBI did a background check on me and the other appointees. We had to answer a lot of questions, but the last one really made me think: “Have you ever done anything that would be embarrassing for the president of the United States to be associated with?” It’s an interesting thought—that my behavior throughout the course of my life could have an impact on someone else’s reputation. It made me wish I had worked a little harder in the area of integrity.

Daniel served as an adviser to the Persian king Darius, and some of the other nobles were jealous of him. But they couldn’t find anything to condemn or criticize in Daniel’s behavior. He was known for being faithful and trustworthy. In other words, he had the kind of integrity that would be an asset to the reputation of people who chose to associate with him. And his integrity represented God well. Darius knew Daniel was a true servant of the true God.

What would your enemies find if they searched your life for something to criticize? What would the FBI find if they ran a background check on you? Is there anyone who would choose not to associate with you because it might harm his or her reputation? How does your integrity reflect on God and impact the people around you? None of us are perfect, but we can be authentic, grow in character, and live in a way that causes people to trust us and want to associate with us. Whether we have integrity or not may be a very personal decision—actually a constant stream of decisions—but it always affects others. Our minor choices when no one is watching can have major effects when people are watching. Our integrity makes an impact.

Uncommon Key > People who compromise their integrity because it’s a “private matter” often end up having public troubles. Live with integrity to impact the world around you positively.