New Candidate Assessment

This weekend I received an email from the YL region I am applying to, in it was a link to an assessment the region requires all potential staff to complete. In my conversation with Steve, the committee Chair, this assessment was described as a personality test. Steve, unfortunately, was only half right.

The assessment (test might be a better word) had 7 parts. The first was to be expected: each question was one statement and you had to answer yes if the statement was true about yourself or no if it wasn't. The next section was also predictable: two scenarios were given and on a scale you had to show which scenario you would rather do. Easy. Then I started to feel like I was taking the GRE all over again. Section 3 was a vocabulary test: one word and you had to choose its synonym. It moved on to patterns. It gave 4 or so numbers and you had to choose the next number in the sequence. 5 was back to vocabulary and English with analogies; I freaking hate analogies. Section 6 was math problems and it finished with another scenario section but this one was quite different, it was clearly ministry related where the first section was more general.

I was on the honor system to not look up words or use a calculator but I really, really wanted to. Honestly, at this point I am afraid that if I don't perform well on this "assessment" then I won't get hired. I mean, it took me 2 full days to "find" time in my schedule to sit down and take it not because I didn't have time (trust me, I did - lots of it) but because I was afraid of failing. A very real fear of mine that has taken some time off in my life (college) but is again rearing its ugly head. I just have to remind myself that my identity is found in who Jesus sees me to be. Also, that these people think I can handle the job, the assessment should only prove that.