I don't know about you, but some days I need a reality check to slap me awake.
Morally, that is.
They say that 'character is what you are in the dark (when no ones looking)'...and that was my test today.
Here's the scenario:
We had rented a Winnie the Pooh DVD from our local library.
Our two-ddler daughter got a hold of it.
I soon discovered two small cracks in the disc - tried it in the machine - and the movie seizures without any sound playing.
{insert exasperated groan}
In that first split second my thoughts were helter-skelter like kids caught breaking rules:
"quick! Return it, and pretend it's not broken!"
....
"buy a replacement disc for cheap...!"
....
"Mum's the word, get Ben to return it!"
(None of these options were admirable I admit, but it was the first response in light of the real issue: fear.) I feared the cost of getting fined. The cost of replacing a disc we couldn't justify the expense of with our current budget. The fear of telling Ben "here's one more stupid thing that's wasting your hard earned salary".
Integrity.
Mine was faltering over such a silly predicament as this piece of Pooh.
I sought an 'objective perspective' by picturing someone else in my place.
That person who returned a broken disc and cowardly slid away... was a jerk.
That jerk would be me if I made such a decision.
Also, the thought of hiding even this 'small' compromise from Ben made me want to puke or punch myself in the face. Of course, once I did tell him, he instantly said we needed to return it and pay the fee levied (he makes integrity seem so easy).
By now you may be thinking that's a silly scenario, or that I need to 'lighten up', or it's not a big deal to tell a few wee lies here and there.
But I think the small - albeit trite - scenarios have a way of revealing our character even before the big ones hit us. To be faithful in little, is to be faithful in much.
It reminds me of Robert Duval's character from the western movie Open Range telling the young cattle hand to not cheat at playing cards saying:
“A man's trust is a valuable thing, Button. You don't want to lose it over a handful of cards.”
Amen.
In a world of politics, marketing, falseness and fears... we need to stand up and show what integrity looks like.
If character is what we are in the dark, I want to shine as light.
My yes, to be yes.
My no, to be no.
I want my actions and thoughts and motives to be as transparent as God sees them.
To walk in the Light as He is in the Light. (1 John 1:7).
So yes, when the push comes to shove,
or the pooh hits the fan,
I need to act with integrity.
And we will pay that damage fee... because it's cheaper than the cost of our character.
Life has a funny way of using the little moments to teach us big truths, doesn't it?
He's still working on me,
Mel ;o)
