Senior Living - April 7, 2017

The most powerful way to preserve your witness

April 7

Better the poor whose walk is blameless than a fool whose lips are perverse. - Proverbs 19:1

Several years ago, Douglas Aircraft went head-to-head against Boeing to try to sell Eastern Airlines its first big jets. The President of Eastern Airlines, Eddie Rickenbacker, told Douglas that the specifications on their aircrafts were nearly identical to Boeing’s with the exception of noise suppression, an area which Boeing had perfected.

Rickenbacker gave Douglas one last chance to out-promise Boeing on this feature. After consulting with his engineers, CEO Donald Douglas told Rickenbacker that he couldn’t make the promise that his aircraft could suppress noise better than Boeing’s.

Rickenbacker replied, “I know you can’t. I just wanted to see if you were honest!”

If you were to ask most people if honesty is an important virtue, you’d probably hear a resounding “yes.” But when we step into situations where a lie might benefit us, being honest can be a challenge.

So what is your integrity worth? Is it worth a little lie to get your way? Or, are you willing to be truthful in all circumstances no matter what the cost might be to you?

Honesty isn’t just the best policy… it’s the only policy for believers who want to maintain their witness by upholding their integrity. Be honest in all you do. It may cost you, but your real reward will be a clear conscience and a solid witness for Jesus Christ!

Prayer Challenge

Pray and ask God to give you the spiritual strength to be honest when you’re tempted to compromise your integrity.

Questions for Thought

Why do you think being honest can be such a challenge when lying can advance your own agenda?

Think of a situation when you were less than honest with someone. What would the truth have cost you in the short term? Looking back, would you have acted differently?

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