Greetings -
Do you know of people, "Christians" even, who are not credible? Credibility and integrity is very important to the Lord. True worshippers of GOD worship Him in spirit and in truth. Our Father expects us to be consistently honest and noble in our thoughts, words, and deeds.
Credibility is vital in every area of our lives. A couple of years ago, I met a "Christian" "minister" who got paid cash for jobs and did not report the income. I mentioned it to him - he offered some sort of "justification."
Have you heard people describe "little white" lies? A lie is a lie is a lie.
Is your word your bond? Can people consistently believe that you mean what you say and that you say what you mean? Do you arrive when indicated, and keep appointments on a prompt and reliable basis? In those instances where you cannot keep your words, do you alert the concerned people to inform of changes? In relationships, business and personal, are you politely responsive? What about being considerate of the time and needs of others? It is wise to be mindful of guarding when others fail to be considerate of our time and needs, as well.
I have observed adults who demand respect from youth yet do not give respect to youth. Children/youth are to be respected as well as adults. We need to tell them "please," "thank you," and "excuse me" just as we should say such to adults. We cannot reasonably expect honesty and respect from youth if they do not consistently observe those qualities in demonstration from us. The same can be said, in some measures, relative to relationships with adults.
GOD is love. GOD is truth. GOD is credible.
Prayer:
Father, in the name of JESUS, please help us to embrace truth in every affair of our lives. We need to be of quality character conformed to Your image with the mind of Christ. Help us to be reliable, dependable and credible in personal and business relationships. Most of all, Lord, please help us to keep it real with You and those whom You have in our lives.
Thank You, Lord, - Amen
Scriptures from the King James Bible
Proverbs 19:22
...and a poor man is better than a liar.
Proverbs 6:16-19
These six things doth the Lord hate; yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.
Revelation 21:8
...and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone:...
Proverbs 4:18
But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.
Credibility...
ReplyDeleteI do know Christians that have done or said similar things that you mentioned above and it disappoints me enough to be careful thatI do not do the same things. We have the tendency to forget that the Lord See's our heart..we can deceive our selves but not the Lord. I admire you for letting the Lord use your writing skill to glorify Him and reach out to others with the truth.
ReplyDeleteGreetings -
ReplyDeleteThank you, Dee for your comments. I appreciate that you are careful...
May GOD help us all...
We Aspergers are notorious for honesty to a fault. On the other hand, my neurotypical wife likes to use allusions, subtle gags, "diplomacy," etc. She automatically assumes everyone else is also a neurotypical and will understand what is meant. With me, she has to stop and translate it for me.
ReplyDeleteBefore we recognized I had Aspergers I would get exasperated and tell my wife, "Say what you mean and mean what you say!"
I couldn't do that with bosses who were giving me instructions using this stuff. I had to go to the manuals behind the boss's back. My nervousness would be taken to mean I was distrustful and up to no good. FAR from it!
There's a manual on how an Aspergers can avoid a lot of these landmines. It is called, "Unwritten Rules of Social Relationships" by Grandin and Barron.
@Timothy -
ReplyDeleteTruly I appreciate you, Timothy. Often, you make more sense to me, with Aspergers, than some folks who do not have it.
Boldly spoken truth appeals to me but I have come to understand more that it does not appeal to everyone. The Lord has me in "class" about how to better modify some of my boldness for those who are fragile and sensitive. I must add, however, that GOD designed and engineered some of us to be typically bold for His glorious purposes. Surely, Jeremiah's boldness did not appeal to many but he purposed to boldly declare as "thus saith the Lord." The same can be said about some of the other prophets and spokespeople for GOD.
I retain my foundational boldness but am learning to temper it as the Spirit leads. There are "moments," though, when our Lord leads me to drop Holy Ghost fueled verbal bombs and they are NOT spoken in calm gentle tones - though love is certainly in action. JESUS is the example. Remember when he said to Peter in Matthew 16:23, "...Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me:..." I do NOT visulize that JESUS spoke those words to Peter in calm and gentle tones yet it was necessary to be said.
Before Christ, I was very outspoken, often without compassion. Typically, I was sincere but often sincerely wrong relative to application of truth - the how, what and when....
After Christ, I am regularly sincere but still need much help with how to state truth with love in practice...
Diplomacy is wise to use as long as it does not dilute the pureness of truth. When we read how JESUS spoke to people in the Bible, he did not mince words and some may even believe that He did not engage in diplomacy or political correctness. My prayer is that we aim for how JESUS demonstrated truth - with faith which worketh by love (Galatians 5:6- KJV)
Ephesians 4:15 - KJV
But speaking the truth in love,...
Hi Sandra,
ReplyDeleteI believe that just as God's word is representative of His integrity, my word is representative of me. If I don't honor my words, what good is my word? That's why I don't commit myself to anything quickly. If I'm asked to commit to something which I know I won't honor, I'd rather say, "no", than offer up some excuse to explain why I couldn't make it.
People may easily forget what I say, but folks have a knack for remembering what I did. Christian and credibility are paired because credibility has to do with honesty, truth, reliability and integrity. If I'm not honest, truthful, reliable and lacking integrity, what does that say about my witness to Christ? I'm a poor example of a follower of Christ.
Blessings and peace.
MTJ
Hi MTJ -
ReplyDeleteYou are right about representation - excellent point. I agree with you not to commit to anything quickly - that is wise.
Your second paragraph is chock full of true expressions - excellent points!
Great post Sandra. I agree with all the comments. I use Col.3:17 as my guide, "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus..."
ReplyDeleteI try to let that govern what I say and do, how I say and do it and whether I say and do it at all. Because if I say it, I'm bound by my word. So I'd rather say no to something and then come back and say yes when I'm sure, than say yes, and have to come back and say, sorry, I can't do it. James says, "We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check" James 3:2.
I'm not perfect yet, but this one thing I do, "I press toward the mark..."
Hi Beverly -
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comments. In particular, this comment from you appealed to me, "...I'm bound by my word." You are right, Beverly. That is so important.
I believe that we have a mandate to be true to the truth. Integrity and credibility is very essential...