Dear SCC & Friends,
Integrity of the upright… ~Proverbs 11:3
Reflection #326
Integrity may be defined as honesty, virtue and wholeness. It embodies truth, authenticity and moral character. Our character is who we are when no one is looking. ~Anon.~ Character is who we are at this present moment and is revealed through our thoughts, words and deeds. We can fool some people all the time and all the people some of the time but not all the people all the time. ~Anon.~ …and certainly not the Lord… For nothing is hidden that shall not become evident, nor anything secret that shall not be known and come to light. ~Lk. 8:17 Integrity and character are developed over time through the pressures and circumstances of life. There are no short cuts to the issues of integrity… Character is always lost when a high ideal is sacrificed on the altar of conformity and popularity. ~Charles Spurgeon~ …Integrity is to be our “North Star” as we navigate our way… The integrity of the upright guides them… ~Pr. 11:3
We never arrive but are always becoming… Changes in life are inevitable and it is how we respond to those changes that makes all the difference. I have been to a number of high school and college graduations over the course of many years. The ceremonies are designed to recognize, validate and distinguish honorable accomplishments. They serve as demarcation points to close out one stage of life while students stand on the precipice of new ventures. Some graduates will be leaving home for the first time, and their faith will be challenged as never before… Will they own their faith? Will they stand firm? Will they remember the Apostle Paul’s admonition? …As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude… See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. ~Col. 2:6-8 A heart of integrity pleases God… Keep up the good work!
Made for these days,
Kevin