Integrity means that we behave in ways that are consistent with the beliefs, values and principles we claim to hold dear. The quality of the person you are is determined by how well you live up to the values that you say are most important to you. Live your life in such a way that when people think about integrity, they think of you – someone who doesn’t take shortcuts or sweep things under the carpet.
Jesus Christ said more about money than about any other single thing because, when it comes to a man’s real nature, money is of first importance. Money is an exact index to a man’s true character. All through Scripture there is an intimate correlation between the development of a man’s character and how he handles his money.
Before our modern era, pillars of marble often supported the weight of a heavy structure. If a stonecutter was dishonest, he would fill a crack in the marble with wax to make it “look” whole, so that he could sell it for a good price. But if the stonemason was wise, when he came to choose the stones he used for pillars, he would heat the marble with a candle. If there was wax, the crevice would be exposed as the wax melted and ran out. When the stone had no wax and no cracks, he would proclaim “this stone has integrity.” That’s the way we want our lives to be – when the heat is on and the pressure comes, we want to unwaveringly communicate and act with unblemished integrity.
There are three simple steps that we can take in our lives to protect or repair our reputation and maintain our spiritual sincerity. The first step is to pray. We commit our plans to God and ask Him to guard our hearts against insincerity. We ask Him to make us aware, through the prompting of the Holy Spirit, of past interactions in which we were less than sincere. This gives us the opportunity to seek out people we may have offended and make amends. The second step is to examine ourselves. The roots of our insincerity could spring from a desire to be liked (saying things people want to hear) or a cavalier attitude toward making plans (agreeing to things without first checking schedules), or from a place of ignorance (being unaware of how others perceive us)… The third step is to place a renewed emphasis on sincerity and integrity. We do this in both big and small ways… We build a reputation as someone whose walk with Christ is genuine and sincere.
Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.
Character is the one thing we develop in this world and take with us into the next.
Character is what you really are; reputation is what people say you are supposed to be.
Character is the face; reputation is the photograph.
Character grows from within; reputation grows from without.
Reputation is what you have when you move to a new community. Character is what you have when you leave.
Character is built over a lifetime. Reputation can be made in a moment.
Character grows like an oak; reputation grows like a mushroom.
A single news report can give you a reputation. A life of diligence gives you character.
Reputation is what men will say about you on your tombstone. Character is what the angels will say about you before the throne of God.
Post wisely over the next months. Contribute to discourse, not division. Check your facts. Resist Memes and cheap digs. Create beautiful content. We can transcend the bitterness and be better, even when we disagree.
Sometimes we react by a kind of religious reflex and repeat dutifully the proper words and phrases even though they fail to express our real feelings and lack the authenticity of personal experience. Right now is such a time. A certain conventional loyalty may lead some who hear this unfamiliar truth expressed for the first time to say brightly, “Oh, I am never lonely. Christ said, `I will never leave you nor forsake you,’ and, `Lo, I am with you alway.’ How can I be lonely when Jesus is with me?”
Now I do not want to reflect on the sincerity of any Christian soul, but this stock testimony is too neat to be real. It is obviously what the speaker thinks should be true rather than what he has proved to be true by the test of experience. This cheerful denial of loneliness proves only that the speaker has never walked with God without the support and encouragement afforded him by society.
How many of us are perfectly content to run our current state of affairs, even though we know we are called to something more? Quite often, our current affairs are the training ground for the greater affairs our Father has in mind for us. Joseph has to learn how to run a successful household so he can one day run a successful nation.
Darren Wilson
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Pastors and leaders must recognize, and then relinquish, any methods of control and manipulation they exercise. They must cease to gossip against fellow pastors and other believers, to talk disrespectfully about other ministries, or to reveal personal tidbits shared in confidence with them. Pastors who have privileged information, are sometimes the worst offenders of gossip. They must refrain from talebearing, before the wineskin tears.