Character & Integrity

Several years ago I heard motivational speaker Zig Ziglar at a conference in New Orleans. He is an amazing speaker and completely lived up to everything I had ever heard about him! One of my favorite quotes of his is this; "With integrity you have nothing to fear, since you have nothing to hide. With integrity you will do the right thing, so you will have no guilt. With fear and guilt removed you are free to be and do your best."

We constantly impress the importance of integrity upon our children. Where is your heart? Where do your intentions lie? Integrity is clearly important. Honesty is number one on my list. I cannot stand to be lied to, and my children know that they will be in a lot less trouble if they just tell the truth. I also know that we are human, and as such, lies are told. I do believe in forgiveness and second chances. We ALL make mistakes. Forgiveness is another very important part of life. (I wrote a blog on forgiveness a few months ago, if you're interested.)

Our character really encompasses who we are overall. It's comprised of our moral, mental, ethical and religious qualities, and forms our unique person. Some of the the things we try to instill in our children are the difference between right and wrong, openness, acceptance, treat others with equality (and as you would want to be treated), forgiveness, kindness, be thankful for what you have, to apologize when necessary, respect others... the things children SHOULD be taught! They actually helped me come up with that list. :o) We hope and pray that their character is whole and healthy. So far, so good!

So, what type of "character" are you?

You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him. -James D. Miles 

I had mentioned in a previous blog that my youngest son was packing an extra snack for a classmate who could not afford to bring one each day. He is still doing that every day, and he is very proud to be helping her. He does this out of the kindness of his heart, and he expects nothing in return. I am so proud of him!

This is how I pray our children will be for the rest of their lives; giving, loving, open souls who care about other people simply because they are people. I don't care what color you are, and neither do my children. We don't care because it's not important. You are a human. I don't care how much money you have, and I don't care about your house, or your car, or the label in your clothes. You are a human. If you are a morally decent human, I'll be proud to call you my friend. If not, I'll pray for you. And I don't mean that with a cute Southern drawl, "Bless yer' heart, I'll pray fer' youuu". I mean, literally, I WILL pray for your soul.


You can tell more about a person by what he says about others than you can by what others say about him. -Leo Aikman

I have found this to be very, very true! Have you ever listened to a person who picks apart others? The things they choose to talk about are really the things they are most insecure or unhappy about in themselves. People who constantly degrade other people are usually pretty miserable inside, and want others to be just as unhappy. Those who gossip are avoiding their own reality by involving themselves in the lives of someone else. Avoidance becomes a cycle and soon it's all too easy to get lost in a downward spiral...

Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny. - Author Unknown

All is not lost! By changing habits, removing the drama from your life and keeping your distance from toxic people (emotional vampires) it's completely possible to break the cycle. I know, because I recently did it! In order to maintain MY character and integrity I have distanced myself from the drama that comes with some younger, less mature women. I know I have maintained my integrity, and I have nothing to fear. I have no guilt.

Times like this become good lessons for our children, too. Lessons in forgiveness seem easy to come by these days. :o( Some people just don't seem to know when to quit. Hopefully something, no matter how small, will spark in them and it will all start to make sense.

Until next time... Peace, Love, and Happiness to all.