INTEGRITY BEGINS



Integrity is a word that we need to use with caution. When some people hear it, it sounds to them like an accusation. They think, "Integrity. That's not me. I don't have it. I've never had it. I'll never have it. I've dug too deep of a hole for myself to ever crawl out into a life of integrity. It will forever be out of my reach." When other people hear it, they pat themselves on the back with a sense of smug self-satisfaction. "Yes, I'm in the top tier. I have integrity." The problem with the word integrity, as with the word character, is that many people pick and choose where they want it to be applied.

Without question integrity involves every area of your life, not just the areas you're good at. No matter where you are on the integrity spectrum, you can get better. It's not too late to make some changes.
You see the integrity that matters most is your integrity. You may be tempted to evaluate your husband or wife or your brother or sister or your friends or neighbors or your pastor or employer or anybody other than yourself. Obviously, there are times when you need to make decisions based on your perceptions of another person's integrity — when you hire someone, or when you take a job, or when you're thinking about getting married, when you enter into a contract, etc.

Fundamentally integrity can be summed up in a single verse found in Psalm 112:1. “How joyful are those who fear the Lord and delight in obeying his commands.” The men and women that I have known personally who have demonstrated most consistently an across-the-board level of integrity — I mean integrity in all areas of their professional and personal life — are men and women who base their lives on these two values. They fear the Lord, and they delight in his commands.

Fear the Lord, at its most fundamental level, means that you're able to say, “There is a God, and it's not me. I'm not the center of the universe.” When you live like you are the center of the universe, the people around end up paying the price. Integrity begins with an attitude that says, “I'm not the be-all end-all in my little world. There is a God to whom I am accountable.” Integrity begins with a relationship with God.

The second part of this verse says those who “delight in obeying his commands.” This fundamentally suggests that you should have a moral compass. A person of integrity understands the difference between right and wrong — and prefers to do what's right. It is the Bible that helps you to define the difference between what is right and what is wrong. The Bible challenges you to excel in every area of your life.

Do you want to become a person of integrity? Here's where you start. Every morning, get alone with God, just you and him and a Bible. Spend at least fifteen minutes in his presence. Begin with praise, submit yourself to his Lordship, dedicate yourself to do his will, and then ask him to speak to you through his Word, as you meditate on a brief passage. If you've never done this before and you don't know where to begin, start with the book of Proverbs or the book of James.

A life of integrity begins when you connect spiritually with God, and you delight yourself in his word.

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