“Keeping your word and living with total integrity.”
Eight simple yet very important words all comprise a clear, admirable, and noteworthy mission statement for any serious person’s life. These words flow together to produce a highly commendable creed to live by,…one that you and your family will be respected for, if you commit to it in every and all aspects of your life.
The challenge that presents itself to the well intending and well meaning individual who tries to stay committed to living their life in full obedience to this proposed personal creed,… is that there are all too many forces and circumstances at work in the average person’s life that tend to pull against his way of life,…that tend to detract from his living using words that are always kept and integrity that is always employed in all that he says or does. Because of the “dog-eat-dog”, “give-and-take” world, culture, and society in which we live, it is very difficult and sometimes seemingly impossible to implement such a simple life creed in any type of consistent manner…..unless and until you make an emphatic, final, and non-negotiable decision that… that is the way you are going to live! That’s It!…Period!
Keeping your word and living with integrity. It sounds so good doesn’t it?
Let’s look closer at what the words really mean. Keeping your word…and… living with integrity. These are two elements that are absolutely essential to living with character and instilling trust in those around you.
Take a moment,…pause, and let your mind roam through the mental corridors of your personal friendships and relationships. Who is it that you know directly or indirectly who lives their life with total character, integrity, and trust? A few names come quickly to the forefront right?…Albeit only a few. Most usually the folks you are thinking about are the ones who have been an intimate part of your life and have impacted and influenced you in a great or even a small way. These are most usually the people who actually lived out this simple personal creed and have earned, through their own conduct, your personal respect and trust.
You see, respect is something that is earned, not freely given or taken. And it is a known fact that you will only trust another person whom you first respect. Those people you most love, respect, and trust are the ones who have spent many years sowing and building into your life. They are people who you could always count on whenever they made a commitment to you,…said something to or about you,… or promised you something. These folks are heroes of a sort to you…they are people you always aspired to emulate and be like.
God talks a great deal about such impactful people and how they live their lives and what they do for others. In His Holy Book of Psalms, Chapter 15, verses 1–4 NKJV. It reads:
The Character of Those Who May Dwell With The Lord
How one is to get close to God
(1) “LORD, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in your holy hill?
(2) He who walks uprightly, And works righteousness, And speaks the truth in his heart;
(3) He who does not backbite with his tongue, Nor does evil to his neighbor, Nor does he take up a reproach against his friend;
(4) In whose eyes a vile person is despised, But he honors those who fear the LORD;
The key,… the secret,…. to being a person of your word, to being a man or woman of complete integrity is fully knowing and staying close to The Lord, Jesus Christ. Whenever another person, place, thing, or event tested you or attempted to pull you away from God and away from righteous behavior which could result in getting you to compromise your integrity,….simply stop all overt activity and behavior and start talking with God,…pray…ask God for His immediate help in getting you back on the proper track. Simply put, abide in Him whenever things get rough. This is an over riding life lesson that you should learn well and insure that you teach to your own children. It has always been and will always be as relevant today as it has been throughout all of recorded history.
Now lets look within ourselves and be totally honest. Let’s ask ourselves three critically important questions as relates to our own life and our own efforts in drawing closer to God and in serving our fellow man:
1. Do people with whom you deal directly know without question or doubt that they can count on you?. Are you good for your word?
2. Have you proven beyond question that you are trustworthy and that you approach life with total integrity?
3. Do your words or actions ever leave anyone challenging, questioning, or guessing about your true concerns and level of personal integrity?
When you live and conduct your life using truthful and reliable words backed with total personal integrity, everyone affiliated with you knows for certain that they can count on you.
“Keeping your word and living with integrity.” Make that your personal life’s creed. Put it into action, and God for certain will honor you!
Peace and Love to All of You………………Poppa Bear