Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 599 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Character - The Tools in Gramps' Backpack

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is Day 599 of our trek, and it is Motivation Monday. We are hiking a series of trails called The Tools in Gramps’ Backpack.

Each Monday for a total of 20 weeks we will explore a different tool that is needed to motivate and equip parents and grandparents to train their children and grandchildren to be successful on their trek of life. If you don’t have children or grandchildren of your own, use these tools to train others that you do influence. Today the 18th tool from Gramps’ Backpack is Character.

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. One trait that seems to be in short supply today among leaders in government, business, and even some churches is that of character, or another word is integrity. Situational ethics, political correctness, and relative truth seems to be so prevalent. If we look back through history, it probably has not changed much since the beginning of time.

As a father, grandfather, and leader it is my desire to be a man of character, a man of untarnished integrity. I desire to be known both as good and godly. This is difficult when the struggles of life seem to overwhelm us like the continuous regularity of the ocean tide.

It is very difficult to possess the attribute of character and integrity ourselves, and yet it is even more difficult to teach it to our children, grandchildren, and others that we mentor. But that is exactly what we need to do. Our life needs to be a bulwark of integrity, which is visible to others, or the best that we can expect is that we will pass on a mediocre character that is tossed back and forth like the ocean waves.

So the tool we will explore today is...

Character

Integrity is a foundational and powerful tool for building better families, churches, businesses, and governments. What do others see when they see you? You may be able to fool some people some of the time, but those who live with you and know you best on a daily basis know what you are really like. Your character is a reflection of your inward mind and heart. You are what you think about and what you allow to permeate your mind. Proverbs 27:19 tells us, "As a face is reflected in water, so the heart reflects the real person."

As mentioned before on our Wisdom-Treks when the Bible refers to heart, you can replace it also with your mind. It speaks of who you are at your core. What you think about and ponder on.

Nothing speaks louder or more powerfully than a life of integrity. Character is built slowly over a lifetime. It is the sum of every right decision, every honest word spoken, every noble thought, and every heartfelt prayer. It is forged on the anvil of honorable work and polished by the three-pronged virtues of compassion, generosity, and humility. Character is a precious attribute. It is difficult to build and so easy to destroy by a lapse of judgment, a harsh word spoken, a moment of physical, emotional or spiritual weakness. As Christ followers, we must seek to live each day with discipline, honesty, and faith. When we do, then integrity becomes a habit, part of the very fabric of our lives.

If you sincerely desire to be a good and godly person, then you must align with God and follow His precepts found in His Word. When you do, your good character will become an integrated part of your life. You must filter your daily input through the filter of God’s Word, just like you filter water through a filter which extracts that which will harm you and only allows the pure water of His Word to flow into your life.