Developing Character
Theme of the week: Out of Work or Changing Careers
Thursday, September 9, 2010
 1 of 1
Key Bible Verses: Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4, NIV Dig Deeper: 1 Peter 1:6-7
God does not cause our hard times, nor does he generally rescue us out of them. But he does give us the grace, courage, and strength to endure hard times. Many times, that's the factory that produces [godly] character qualities. "The 94 percent of us who believe in God," [Richard Bolles wrote in What Color is Your Parachute], "usually need a larger conception of God, as we face each new crisis in our life."
Easy for him to say? Not really. Richard Bolles is the brother of Don Bolles, an investigative reporter in Arizona who was killed by a car bomb in 1976 while investigating organized crime and political connections. May I suggest that Richard Bolles is intimately acquainted with injustice and suffering? He, too, has faced the choice between humble, quiet grace and angry, demanding assertion and has chosen wisely. That wise choice has resulted in an enormous overflow into the lives of others such as myself.
What is the application? Forgive: forgive the one who fired you. It may be a blessing in disguise in the form of a new future. Forgive yourself. Now is the time you need to stand your tallest—acquiring a nobler character full of grace, courage, and strength.
—Stephen Adams in Back to Work!
My Response: How might God want to use my difficulties and struggles—career or otherwise—to produce godly character in me?
Thought to Apply: People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built.—Eleanor Roosevelt (first lady, political activist)
Adapted from Back to Work! (Moody, 2009) by permission. All rights reserved by the copyright holder and/or the publisher. May not be reproduced.
Copyright © 2010 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.
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Dear Heavenly Provider, help me to trust in you and not in my ability to earn money; keep me from ever thinking my true value and worth is derived from my career or job title.
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