Integrity Without Compromise
By Ken & Jan Merop
Cleveland, Tennessee
Compromise. Is it ever a good thing? Perspective and motivation matter when considering the answer.
I recall a time as a young secretary when I had to choose between obeying my boss and lying to a caller that he wasn’t there (when he was at his desk in plain sight). Should I compromise my integrity, my values, and my faith that God would see me through?
I chose to let him know that I couldn’t lie for him and why. God blessed me as my boss showed me greater respect because of my stand.
Husbands and wives often face challenges that require compromise…middle ground and mutual understanding. If correctly motivated, finding a happy medium can avoid conflict.
The perspective should be to let go of one’s own desires and consider the other’s hopes. And the motivation should be consideration and love.
However, compromise isn’t good when it comes to our faith, integrity, and values as I learned early on in the professional world.
The Bible firmly teaches that we are to conduct our lives in honesty and not shrug our shoulders or blink our eyes when evil comes knocking…even when it appears as an enticing dessert and not a root canal!
Our integrity should set the standard for our daily walk…our lifestyle. Its firm foundational support is our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. So, be it at home, on the job, at school, or simply in conversation with others, a steadfast posture needs to be evident.
In Colossians 3:23-25 NLT we read, “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people…the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward…But if you do what is wrong, you will be paid back…”
The verses before encourage us to be tender-hearted, merciful, kind, humble, gentle, and patient. Being clothed in love that comes from God brings harmony.
Psalm 1:1-3a NKJV gives us the same advice.
“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its season.”
On the other hand, verse 6b says, “the way of the ungodly shall perish.”
Let God-focused thinking guide where we walk, stand, and sit…without compromise…for his glory and our blessing. Selah
Delicate strength
With legs that appear so delicate they couldn’t hold up a flea,
the butterfly tenaciously clings to the nourishing blossom…
proving there’s strength where none appears to be.
Aha! And we must do the same.
Attach ourselves to our life-giving Lord,
Who infuses us with His strength…
Delighting in His promises and standing on His Word.
“…by which have been given to us exceedingly great
and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers
of the divine nature…”
2 Peter 1: 4
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After six years in the mountains of Avery County, Ken and Jan Merop are now living in the hilly Tennessee countryside of Cleveland, TN…just outside of Chattanooga. Ken’s photos can be seen at kenmeropphotography.com.
Read more Christian news from Ken and Jan HERE.
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