Have you ever wondered about the extremely low level of integrity
in today’s societies? Have you ever wondered about the increasing
number of people, organizations, businesses and even governments
who give their words so easily without any intention of upholding
it? Have you ever wondered about the hate, distrust and discomfort
created by those who make no effort to be responsible for their
responsibilities, accountable for their accountabilities?
What about the obvious lack of integrity demonstrated by medical
doctors who smoke, law enforcement officers who accept bribes, politician
and public servants who embezzle public funds, judges who withhold
information about conflict of interest during judgment, mechanics
who steal working engine pieces from your automobile and Christians
who consistently use foul languages?
While the lack of integrity demonstrated by the politicians may
be very obvious because of the media (whose integrity is also a
question by the way), this is an outbreak, an epidemic that can
only be contained individually. Beside still ironically visible
in national anthems, flags, pledges, and courthouses, or being associated
with statistical data, it has almost disappeared from our daily
lives – including schools which should be a place to learn
it, and religious organizations which should be a place to exemplify
it.
These days, you don’t have to look far before finding someone
bent on selling you something under false pretence, someone cutting
corners in his or her taxes, someone trying to get a job with a
falsified resume, someone telling a lie to look good, someone attempting
to assume the credit of another, employees trying to short-change
time and resources from their employees, employers overworking their
employees with the duties of other employees that were retrenched,
and even pastors and evangelists who expect way more sacrifice from
their congregations than they (the pastors and evangelists) are
willing to offer, sometimes, even more than the Bible suggests.
Integrity is honesty, truthfulness, openness; it is the
steadfast adherence to strict moral and ethical principles; the
soundness of moral character. Words like white lie, partial truth
and blue collar crimes were formed by those bent on diluting the
definition of integrity. Basically, your integrity is questioned
when you make promises and don’t keep them; when you say something
and do something else; when you think and see things that you shouldn’t;
when you are present in places that you should be absent, and absent
from places that you should be present; and when you make no remarkable
effort to adhere to your responsibilities as a person, spouse, parent,
worker, leader, supervisor, manager, pastor, evangelist, business
owner – and even as a business and non-profit, religious and
educational organizations.
Your integrity is questioned by your actions and inactions, by your
noise and silence, by your engagement and disengagement. Thus, before
we point a finger at another person, it is wise to look at the mirror
and measure our own integrity. How many voicemails or e-mails are
you yet to respond to? What about the feedback you often promise
yourself to offer to an outreach like this? If you struggle with
the mere human expectation of responding when being contacted, you
are likely struggling in other areas as well.
Before accusing the local pastor of mismanaging
the funds of his church, you should question your integrity regarding
your household finances; how well are you managing the funds that
God has blessed you and your family with. Before you accuse your
local doctor of inappropriate behaviour with his or her patients,
you should question the integrity of your own behaviours when you
think no one is watching - the websites you surf, bodies and images
that you lust after, the devious plans you execute in 'secret'.
How often do you look at others inappropriately, how often do you
think of the nakedness of those who are fully clothed? When Jesus
Christ said, "Let he who have not sinned throw the first stone",
this is what he meant - to be mindful of our unfair quickness to
accuse others especially when we also lack integrity.
“A
false sense of integrity is easily derived when we compare ourselves
to other people. A truer sense, however, is easily derived when
we compare ourselves to what is generally expected of us, especially
those undocumented responsibilities that come with where we
find ourselves in life.
The level of desire, determination, dedication and diligence
that we apply to our collective responsibilities in life is
the truest measure of our integrity.”
My
friend, if you must show off something, let it be your integrity,
for it is the most precious item you can ever have; let
it be your quickness to respond to others, to fulfill your responsibilities,
and the diligence with which you execute your obligations. In the
words of Martin Luther King, “an unexamined life is not worth
living!” He continued by saying that, “A man should
do his work so well that even the living, the dead, and the unborn
could do it no better”. My question to you today is “What
would be said of your integrity at your funeral?”
I am determined
about a lot of things in life, including my life purpose of educating,
encouraging, coaching, and exhorting people like you to greater
heights, my determination to help people get to their next level
of development; but even more important is my desire to ensure that
my life and doctrine are closely aligned with each other, my determination
to live in such a way that when my children think of me, they think
of integrity – along with faith, passion, diligence and fun!
How are you modelling integrity for your family, boss, employees,
peers, employers, congregation, community, and everyone else around
you?
At The Exhortation Institute of Life and Business Skills, we have
developed some effective techniques on how to measure and improve
your Personal Integrity, Leadership Integrity, Marital Integrity,
Parental Integrity, Spiritual Integrity, Relationship Integrity,
Health and Wellness Integrity, Academic Integrity, Financial Integrity,
Career Integrity, Organizational Integrity, and even Communal Integrity;
so contact us now if you wish to improve your personal satisfaction,
and be more respected and appreciated in these and other areas of
your life and business. Whenever we release a newsletter
like this, we always receive so many feedbacks from so many people
in so many countries expressing their desire to seize one of the
numerous developmental opportunities that we offer, but only a few
often follow through on these promises that they make to themselves,
only a few follow up on their innermost desire to be more effective,
more fulfilled in life.
Consider these compelling words of Jesus Christ: "Enter through
the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the road that
leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the
gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find
it." The reason why integrity remains the most distinct characteristics
that sets people apart from the crowd is because it no longer a
common human trait. According to Francis Bacon Sr., the 15th Century
English Philosopher, "It's not what we eat but what we digest that
makes us strong; not what we gain but what we save that makes us
rich; not what we read but what we remember that makes us learned;
and not what we profess but what we practice that gives us integrity."
Basically, we build integrity for ourselves by fostering those principles
that everyone admires but only a few have the courage to assume.
From my experience
as a Life Coach, I have come
to realize that we never fall short of any goal, but rather the
passion required to keep the goal alive, the effort required to
maintain a forward momentum, the integrity required to garner the
necessary support, the diligence required to tighten loose ends
and the openness required to accommodate other people’s opinions.
As a fellow citizen of earth, I have realized that what will be
truly said of us when we depart this world will be reflective of
either our selfishness or selflessness, our cowardice or courage,
our laziness or determination, our falsehood or integrity. The
people who are not guided by principles and integrity do anything,
watch anything, listen to anything, say anything, read anything,
play with anything, go anywhere, and then end up dying for nothing.
My friend, we exhort you to measure and improve your integrity
everyday while you are still alive, for it is your key to personal
satisfaction, effectiveness, and fulfilment both in this world and
in the world to come.
To have this
exhortation or any other one in our Life
of Impact series personally delivered in your organization,
church, communal gathering or any other event, please send an email
to alex.ihama@TheExhortation.com.
You may also contact us for one-on-one or group Life, Business and
Executive coaching, or register with The Exhortation Community by
clicking here. Thanks to
those of you who continuously share The Exhortation with others,
for we are now serving tens of thousands in over 70 countries! Be
a friend to others; share this with them as well. This is Passionate
Growth!
"If you are learning nothing, nothing will change in your life.
One question that we must always have an answer for is "what
are you learning?"
"It is never too late to get help,
for help is easier to get if sought now. Only a self-destructive
person goes through life without learning the rules of living."
The website is so edifying and empowering. It cuts across to meet the
social, emotional, financial, relationship, physical and spiritual needs
of everyone. I am so blessed and encouraged by the words on it. The World
needs more of you with such excellent service provision.
Keep up the good work; your labour of love is not in vain.
As a young
man, Al was a skilled artist, a potter. He had a wife and two fine sons.
One night, his oldest son developed a severe stomach ache. Thinking it was
only some common intestinal disorder, neither Al nor his wife took the condition
seriously
If
you need HELP to identify the GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES in your Life and Business,
ENCOURAGEMENT to maintain a FORWARD momentum, or ACCOUNTABILITY to ensure
SUCCESSFUL completion, CONTACT us now
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