By Willow Sanders
Director of Student Services
Character is who you are when no one is looking.
This quote has always been a foundational
brick for me.
If Character is who you are when no one is looking…
Integrity,
for sure, is who you are when everyone is.
I was really struck by this as I watched T.C. Stallings lead
a workshop on being uncompromised in an industry that is all about the word.
It got me thinking of how easily our character can lead us
to places of compromise. Places we swear on paper we’d never be led to. No.
Matter. What.
The thing is we usually put those as the BIG things on our
‘No-No’ list and completely forget that tons of tiny bits make up a road. And
when you hit a pothole, it was because the little parts, collectively laid,
gave way together in their formed state.
T.C. shared that he found when he stayed true to the base
things he knew to be true about his faith, about God’s Word and about the
world, it was much easier to be uncompromised.
It can seem like such a daunting task, right?
You mean I have to watch my life THAT carefully?!
Well, let’s unpack that.
How well made do you want the road that you walk on to be?
How structurally sound do you need it to be?
If we only have a character that suits us for the moment but
not the integrity to walk it out, major problems can arise. Life has enough of
those already, why add to the heap?!
We’ve all seen those roads that are haphazardly
patched-frustrating to say the least. Like, just fixed enough to be functional.
Our desire shouldn’t be for our life to be ‘just functional
enough’ but rather we should be developing a firm foundation from which we can
boldly drive toward the things that will strengthen, equip, guide, and empower
us.
Here are a few simple steps to pave the way:
1. Assess
who you are
What character traits do you hold valuable? Who in your life can you look
to that possess those qualities? Read up on the topic.
2. Recognize
your surroundings
It can be really hard to hold true to a certain character trait if you
are spending the majority of your time with people or things that don’t mimic
that. Make sure you have people who believe in and walk out accountability.
3. Adjust your course when necessary
If
you see that your character (who you say you are or who you believe you are) isn’t
matching what you are walking out in small and large ways, then it may be time
to do some self-evaluating. This is the time for our walk to match our talk.
Not always easy, but always a growing experience!
When we can take steps to connect our character with our
integrity we are on the right road to success!
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