Good character is the best insurance ...

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The integrity of the honest keeps them on track; the deviousness of crooks brings them to ruin. A thick bankroll is no help when life falls apart, but a principled life can stand up to the worst. Moral character makes for smooth traveling; an evil life is a hard life. Good character is the best insurance; crooks get trapped in their sinful lust. -Proverbs 11:3-6

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I once heard that character is reflected in what you do when no one is looking. I like that. So many of us learned to behave when our parents were around but lost our way and misbehaved when we left home. It reminds me of the parable of the prodigal son - he sinned and lost all of his inheritance when he left home. Yet a spark of character arose in that prodigal as he left the stench of the sty and returned home to his loving father. Bad character is not permanent.

Is there a better thing to aspire to than integrity? Living an external life that is consistent with my inner life challenges and inspires me. Even so, I think that it is so easy to pretend and play the hypocrite. Jesus put it this way: "For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness." Integrity, being the same on the inside and outside, keeps us on track and connected to reality.

Help us Lord to be filled with your righteous character on the inside and the outside.

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