Be One of the "Few"
Theme of the Week: Shun Those Shortcuts
Dan Coats
Saturday, May 25, 2002
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Be One of the "Few"
Theme of the Week: Shun Those Shortcuts
Saturday, May 25
Q. What's so bad about shortcuts?
A. Falsehood is far more expensive than courageous honesty. "Good people are guided by their honesty," says Solomon; "treacherous people are destroyed by their dishonesty" (Proverbs 11:3). Falsehood may appear to offer benefit without cost. But short-term gains at the expense of the true and the right are bad investments. We jeopardize God's blessing when we try to skate past His will.
But isn't this really going against the grain?
Yes. George Washington is reputed to have said, "Few men have virtue to withstand the highest bidder."
The temptation to fudge or rationalize away an inconvenient promise is strong. But for the Christian, if keeping one's word costs money, time, or even personal sacrifice, the price is worth the effort. A God who never breaks His word calls us to be like Him, to reflect His character in a world desperate for leaders it can trust.
Is there a payback?
Yes. God promises to bless us for our obedience. And integrity is critical to our testimonies. "The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in men who are truthful" (Proverbs 12:22, NIV). This rare, unswerving dedication to the truth resonates in the vacuum of a culture with a shrunken spirit. It declares, "I don't belong to myself, for God paid a high price for me." God offers His strength to empower us to be faithful, to be numbered with the "few" and let His integrity shine through us.
Dan Coats, former U.S. Senator (Indiana), is president of Big Brothers and Big Sisters.
Adapted from: Contact (Fall 94) by permission.
Copyright © 2002 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.
Click here for reprint information on Men of Integrity.
May/June 2002,Vol. 5,No. 3
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Holy Father, help me to reflect Your character with absolute integrity.
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