Our theme for this month: “Being a virtuous person”
Our Bible verse for today: “I know God that you examine our hearts and rejoice when you find integrity there.” 1 Chronicles 29:17 (NLT)
Our thought for today: “God delights in people of integrity.”
If you are a person of integrity it means that you adhere steadfastly to a strict code of moral and ethical behavior. If you are a Christian than your strict code of moral and ethical behavior grows out of your relationship with Jesus Christ and it falls within the boundaries established for us by God in the Bible.
Some synonyms for integrity include upright, honest, truthful, sincere trustworthy faithful, moral, honorable, and just. If you are a person of integrity then those terms will describe you.
Coach Tony Dungy once observed, “The great thing about integrity is that it is truly no respecter of position or wealth or race or gender. It is not determined by shifting circumstances, cultural dynamics, or what you’ve previously achieved. From the moment you are born, you – and you alone – determine whether you will be a person of integrity. Integrity does not come in degrees – low, medium, or high. You either have integrity or you do not.”
There are many good Biblical examples of men and women of integrity. Joseph in the Old Testament comes to mind. So does Joshua and Daniel, Mary and Joseph, John, and Paul, and Barnabas.
The interesting thing about the virtue of integrity is that you control it. As Coach Tony pointed out, you and you alone determine the choices you will make and the actions you will take. You decide to tell the truth or not, to be honorable or not, to be faithful, to act with justice, to treat people with decency. Those choices are yours and they are the determining factor as to whether you really have integrity or not.
God searches hearts, and He is pleased when He finds true integrity. Will He find it in yours?
Oak Hill Baptist Church