Crisis and Compromise: Choosing God's Way - Part 1

Middle-aged men and women are subject to having the wind knocked out of their sails just when they should be the happiest and most content with their life's achievements. The twenty year period between ages forty and sixty produce an alarming number of divorces. What do you think could be the reason for this sense of discouragement and alienation?

Researchers refer to the emergence of a crisis of integrity. It's not unusual for a person's integrity, that personal sense of respectability and uprightness, to become fragmented and damaged. The movie Liar Liar was based on a person's agreeing not to tell a lie, even an insignificant, small lie, for twenty-four hours. Have you tried this test of integrity?

White lies and other misrepresentations of oneself diminish integrity; yet there is hope for restoring damaged integrity. The Lord Jesus Christ makes this possible through confession, repentance, and forgiveness. Jesus enables and empowers each person to choose righteousness and faith, which is a decision for healthy, positive change. 

Integrity: Character Strength for a Lifetime - Part 2

Experiencing a crisis of integrity at any stage of adult development is possible. Integrity is one of those words that has far-reaching implications, for it's deeply enmeshed into our character and personality. Integrity reaches into the core of our soul and, in some respects, serves as a guiding light for all of life's opportunities and problems.

When integrity is diminished, our character suffers grave consequences. How would you define integrity? A friend in her late fifties responded with: "A person of integrity has backbone." Another friend said: "A man of integrity is a square shooter." Courage and conviction to do what is right, along with honesty, define integrity for these two people.

God intends for us to evaluate the strength of our integrity because it's vulnerable to change. Our choices sustain, elevate, or diminish integrity, so it's crucial  to remember that God supplies us with his grace, mercy, and forgiveness when sin damages our integrity. God promises to restore and strengthen our integrity as we, in faith, ask him to do so.