Integrity

There was a king in Judah named Josiah, who became king when he was eight years old. He would reign for thirty-one years. In his eighteenth year, he sent his secretary to the high priest, telling him to take the money that was collected in the Lord’s temple, and give it those who were working to rebuild the temple. He in turn was to give it to the workmen.  He also told them: “But no accounting is to be required from them for the money put into their hands since they work with integrity.  2 Kings 22:7  Isn’t that a good word – INTEGRITY? Something that is becoming rarer and rarer.  Josiah knew that the men doing the work were trustworthy, and he rewarded them accordingly. Today we live in a society where we want everything run by a lawyer first.  I’m not against lawyers, but what happens when a lawyer is not trustworthy?  The world is filled with people who no longer have integrity, and we recognize that, so we insist that things we have done be handled by those who are supposed to have integrity.  It’s like the doctor we are supposed to trust with our health, but who takes advantage of that trust and causes us harm. When we no longer can trust, we are hurt and wonder who can we turn to because we cannot find another with integrity. I think it is because we no longer trust in the Lord. We have this expectation that some are trustworthy because of degree.  Some are trustworthy because of position and some are trustworthy because of wealth. But who is truly trustworthy? Where is the man/woman of integrity? Maybe we have just lost the understanding of who we are to trust.  We are at a place in history where we need to get back to the basics of true life: To trust the Lord with all our hearts, to lean not on our own understanding, but lean on Him instead of man; to realize that ALL men, you and me, are capable of selfish, instead of selfless deeds. A person of integrity is hard to find. For me, I do not want to judge a person on whether he or she has integrity, for we all fail. Instead, maybe we can do what scripture tells us: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding; think about Him in all your ways, and He will guide you on the right paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6 Don’t you think it’s time we put our hope in the One whose integrity is solid and true, and who promises to always lead us in the right direction?  Here is the direction I will take: “But if it doesn’t please you to worship Yahweh, choose for yourselves today the one you will worship: the gods your fathers worshiped beyond the Euphrates River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land your are living. As for me and my family, we will worship Yahweh.”  Joshua 24:15

 Heavenly Father, may we worship You today in all our ways. May we put our total trust in You instead of man. May our hope be built on You instead of man. May the ways we live come from a heart lead by You, and not ourselves. Lord, we are a fickle people, and need You, the only One who we can have total trust in. Please reveal to us today Your will, in Jesus name.