Day 181: Don't Trade Your Integrity

Integrity -  adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty.

And integrity according to oxford dictionary means

-The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles.

Proverbs 11:3

The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.

As you’ve probably concluded by now, to day we are talking about integrity. So let’s start this off with a question;

Is whatever you want worth trading your integrity for?

Now I will answer that question. No. No it’s not, it is definitely not worth it. You know it, I know it, everybody knows it. Nothing should be worth throwing away your morals and beliefs, we have to stand for something. We have to hold on to something. The scripture says, the integrity of the upright guides them, now if we give that up we will not have any guidance. We all have a set of beliefs whether we are Christian or not, we all have something we believe in that we are not willing to give up. We are not willing to sacrifice or put on the line for anything or anyone. For many of us reading this devotional, that thing is our relationship with God. For me it is exactly that, there are many things I’m willing compromise on, one of those things is not my relationship with God, it’s not my morals. I live by my own morals and it makes me who I am, they influence the choices I make and where I go in my life. I am not willing to give that up or sacrifice it for anything. As an actor this is a subject that comes up for me a lot, whether I’m talking to my friends about it or checking myself on it. I love acting with every part of me, there’s is nothing else I see myself doing, I’ve been acting my whole life. However there are things more important to me than acting. As much as I love what I do, I love God more, I love my family more. I believe that’s what makes me a better actor is that, yes this is very high on my list of priorities, but it’s great to know that something in my life is higher. There will always be a reason as to why I act. I refuse to trade my integrity for acting, because I stand for something bigger and that allows me to be a better artist.

One of the shows I recently binge-watched is, ‘Jane the Virgin’, a show centered around a young woman, Jane (the amazing Gina Rodriguez), who has made a vow not to have sex until she is married. Many of us in the church have taken this vow and knows what it’s like. However, there are times throughout the show when she decides she’s just gonna do it, and every time something comes in the way of it, even on her wedding night. But when she has sex for the first she is married, and later on she talks about how happy she is that she waited until she was married.

Now I’m not here to talk about sex, and waiting for marriage. I wanted to use that as an example that holding on to your integrity and your beliefs is so worth it in the end. There is nothing more rewarding than standing for what you believe in. I know we all want so much out of our lives, and we all want to get to “that place”. Whatever that “that place” is for you, you know what I’m talking about, it’s different for everyone. What I’m saying is, getting to the top doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice or trade in your integrity, just to get there a bit quicker. We can do that to get to where we are going quick but as fast as we go up we’ll come down even quicker. There is something beautiful about holding on to your beliefs, even if it means it takes a bit longer, and it’s a little harder. But you know that once you get there, wherever ‘there’ is, once you’re there, you’ll know that you didn’t have to trade anything or compromise at any point. God works in mysterious ways and He shows favor to His people. Hold on to that, you’d be surprised at what He does in your life. He is looking for people who will remain committed to Him, even when fighting temptation feels like pulling a ton of bricks. Hold on to your faith, hold on to your morals, hold on to your integrity because it will be so rewarding in the long run.

This can be with anything, of course our relationship with God comes first, but after that whatever personal morals or vows you’ve made to yourself. Don’t trade them in. Stick it out, it’ll be so worth the wait.

Reflection

1. What are some of the beliefs and morals you hold dear?
2. Are you willing to sacrifice them?
3. Based on your answer to the above question, why or why not?

Prayer Time

Allow your answers to the above questions guide your prayer. Talk to God about holding on to your integrity and standing firm on your beliefs. Have a conversation Him.

I love you so much and I hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 182!

Day 36: Slaves to Our Desires

We all have that one thing that trips us up, and it can be anything but whatever it is, whenever we encounter it, we have to pray long and hard so we do not give in to it. This one thing is usually bad for us, it’s our guilty pleasure, it’s so wrong but it feels so right.

One of the biggest challenges we face when we become Christians is giving up our desire to do whatever we want, and giving up the things we used to do. Why does the wrong thing feel so right and why is it so hard to do what is right? I think Paul said it best in Romans 7:14-15:

So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate.

Paul hits the nail right on the head in this scripture, we all know what this feels like, we all know the feeling of fighting our desires, I think he is speaking to the entire human race here, everyone can identify and understand this scripture. We know what is right, so why don’t we do it? We know what is wrong, so why do we do it? We are sinners saved by grace, we live in a fallen world, we were born into sin, But there is a way out, sin can no longer control us, it cannot overtake us, sin has no power over us, because Jesus holds the power over sin. Jesus defeated sin, and due to His sacrifice we can live a full, pure, and righteous life. We know this, we know all about it. We know that sin can’t control us, But it’s that one thing that always seems to get the best of us, there's that one battle that we continue to fight everyday. Just because we give our lives to Christ, doesn’t mean our sinful desires will cease immediately.  We are human, we have unholy desires, we make mistakes we screw up a lot, but we don't have to be slaves to our own desires. We’re not perfect by no means, but when Jesus died on that cross He broke the bondage of sin. We no longer have to live that life, we will face temptation but Christ gives us the strength to get through it.

James 4:7

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

We have to resist, resist that devil, don’t give in, not even a little. Resist! Sometimes we get to points where we kind of give in to our flesh but not all at once. We start to compromise saying, ‘oh it’s okay if I do this’ ‘Technically I’m not sinning.’ ‘It’s just a small sin’. Somehow we have learned how to convince ourselves that what we are doing is right when we know it’s wrong. I remember growing up and my mom would say two things to us: 1. “A lie is a lie, no matter how big or small, because you have to keep lying to keep the original lie going and eventually that small lie will turn into a big lie.” 2. “I gave you an inch and you took a mile.”

Eventually those small things, and small sins we give in to will become bigger and bigger. If we keep taking inches eventually we’re going to get to a mile. We have to resist, a moment of pleasure or satisfaction is not worth it, it’s so not worth it. Pray, resist and repeat, until the devil flees. God has given us the strength to do it. Stand firm, don’t give in. I know it’s hard but it is so worth it.

Luke 12:34

Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

What do we treasure most? Is it what we have here on earth or are our treasures stored up in heaven. The synonym to treasure is cherish. Something we hold on to tighter than anything else, what is it? Is what we cherish or desire more important than God. Is it worth the trouble and the sacrifice. I know we all have things that we cherish and that is okay, but Christ should be number one on that list. When Christ becomes what we desire most we will find ourselves falling into temptation and giving in less. Because we don’t like putting the things and people we love in place where we can possibly lose them. When we learn to treasure Christ above all, that is where our heart will remain.  

Reflection/ Prayer Time

As you reflect on the passages today and answer the questions proposed, begin to talk to God about your desires. Talk to Him about the things you know are making you slip, ask God to help you and give you the strength to resist the temptation. It is imperative that we are completely honest with God, show Him every part of your heart, especially the parts you tend to hide. Rest in His love, and strength.

Have an amazing day, I Love You! Share this with someone. Make sure you come back tomorrow for day 37! Enjoy this song